Migrants will pay for the NHS: New bid to cut the £500million-a-year health tourism bill

UP to £500million a year spent by the NHS on treating migrants is to be clawed back in a new crackdown on welfare tourism.

health, migrants, hospitals, nhs, pay, tourism, welfare, cash, a&e, crackdown, stop, moneyJeremy Hunt said that we should be collecting money from international visitors who use the NHS [GETTY]

The Government yesterday unveiled an initial scheme designed to reward health trusts that reclaim payments for caring for EU patients.

Under the plan, a trust can expect a 25 per cent bonus for each treatment claimed for.

The shake-up follows concerns that NHS administrative staff are failing to use the system for reclaiming cash for treating foreign patients because they cannot be bothered with the red tape.

It follows a series of initiatives by ministers seeking to stop migrants milking the welfare state.

At present, the Government pays more than £800million a year to cover the cost of Britons receiving healthcare abroad.

But it receives only £29million a year back from EU and associated countries for treating overseas visitors.

When patients from outside Europe are included, the total reclaimed by the NHS reaches £73million.

Tory Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said: “There is about half-a-billion quid in money we should be collecting from international visitors who use the NHS.

 Officials hope to eventually reclaim the full £500million bill [GETTY]

There is about half-a-billion quid in money we should be collecting from international visitors who use the NHS

Tory Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt

“I have no problem whatsoever with foreigners using our NHS, as long as they contribute to it either through taxes or through paying charges.

"We need to be much better at collecting that revenue.

"Trusts have no financial incentive to report someone as an EU visitor.

“We are announcing a premium on the tariff for trusts who report EU visitors using their services, to pay for the extra administrative costs and to create financial in­centives so we get proper reporting and we get the money.

“My target is that, by this and subsequent measures we will announce for non-EU visitors, we will raise around half-a-billion pounds a year to pay for additional doctors and nurses on the front line.”

If a hospital reclaims £100 spent on an an overseas patient it will receive a total of £125, with the extra coming from the Government.

Officials estimate that the incentives will raise around £200million and are examining other schemes that will eventually claw back the full £500million.

The £200million saved could pay for 1,400 hospital consultants, 4,700 nurses or 34,000 knee replacements, they say.

Mr Hunt ruled out charging for GP appointments or visits to casualty departments under the current Government.

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