Minister for Health (): I want to update the House
about further measures this Government is taking to step up its
response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which continues to see
hundreds of thousands of people who ordinarily live in Ukraine
forced to flee their homes and seek safety and support in other
countries.
Today I want to announce new legislative measures in England to
exempt Ukrainian residents from NHS charging so that they can
access the NHS on broadly the same basis as someone who is
ordinarily resident in the UK. We will apply these exemptions
retrospectively from 24 February 2022 to further protect people.
Current overseas visitor NHS charging legislation requires us to
recover NHS secondary care treatment costs from anyone who does
not ordinarily live in the UK, unless an exemption applies to
them. Primary care and A&E services and certain types of
treatment – including for most infectious diseases - remain free
to all, regardless of a person’s home
We have therefore now amended the Charging Regulations to allow
everyone who is ordinarily resident in Ukraine, and their
immediate family members, who are lawfully in the UK to access
NHS care in England for free, including those who transfer here
under official medevac routes.
This will cover all potential treatment needs, except for
assisted conception services, to align with the existing
exemption for those whose Immigration Health Surcharge fees have
been waived. Those who will benefit from this additional
exemption include:
- Anyone who uses an alternative temporary (less than six
months) visa route outside of the Family or Sponsorship routes
- Anyone who chooses to extend their visit or seasonal worker
visa temporarily, without going through the IHS system
- Anyone who is in the process of switching visas (which could
take some time to process)
We have applied a six-month review clause to this policy and it
is our hope that this will not only help provide security and
peace of mind for the NHS and those in need, but also to remain
open to further developments.
Ukrainian residents who are in the UK unlawfully are not covered
by these measures but will remain within the scope of existing
provisions within the Charging Regulations. This means that not
only treatment needed immediately, but any treatment that cannot
safely wait until the overseas visitor can be reasonably expected
to leave the UK, must never be withheld or delayed, even when
that overseas visitor has indicated that they cannot pay. Some
NHS services will remain exempt from charge for all overseas
visitors, such as primary care, A&E services and treatment of
infectious diseases.
This Government continues to stand shoulder to shoulder with our
Ukrainian friends and we are proud to continue to offer support
for Ukrainian residents in our country.
