NHS hospitals told to prepare to charge newly-arrived EU citizens the day after a No Deal Brexit
EU CITIZENS who arrive in the UK post a No Deal Brexit will be charged for treatment on the NHS, Government documents have revealed.
In the event Boris Johnson allows Britain to leave the EU without reciprocal agreements for member states, the NHS is advised to prepare to start charging “immediately after exit day” on October 31.
The UK is currently in talks with Brussels to secure free medical treatment for Brits abroad, but is yet to make this happen.
With Boris happy to leave without a deal if agreements aren’t reached on or before October 31, new rules could see EU nationals already living in the UK having to prove their status before receiving free treatment on the NHS.
MailOnline reports EU citizens living in the UK will have to show proof of residency or a utility bill in order to get their treatment free of charge.
No-one will be refused emergency treatment.
The documents state: “In the absence of a reciprocal healthcare agreement with an EU country or a broader agreement with Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Switzerland, after exit day new visitors from that country to the UK will no longer automatically be entitled to free NHS-funded healthcare in England.
NO FREEBIES
“They will be chargeable at the standard NHS tariff unless they fall within one of the existing exemptions,” it continues.
“They may, however, choose to use private healthcare, or travel insurance to recover costs paid to the NHS for treatment received.”
The Lib Dems hit out at Boris following the release of the new documents, saying he is going back on his assurance to the 3.2m EU nationals that they “will get the absolute certainty of the rights to live and remain [in Britain].
The party’s home affairs spokesman Ed Davey said: “This policy demonstrates that Boris Johnson has no intention of honouring the promise he made to the 3.6 million EU citizens living in the UK.
“Both the Leave campaign and the Conservative Government promised that their rights would not change after Brexit, but this policy would deprive more than 2 million of their right to NHS care, free at the point of use.
RELATED STORIES
“The Government says EU citizens have until the end of 2020 to apply for Settled Status, even if we crash out of the EU without a deal, but now we discover it plans to subject them to the Conservatives’ Hostile Environment as of November 1 this year.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said: “We can completely reassure EU citizens currently living in the UK before or on October 31 that they will still be able to access free healthcare on the NHS after we leave the EU on 31 October, whatever the circumstances.
“How they prove their eligibility for NHS treatment will not change, regardless of whether they have applied to the EU settlement scheme.”
We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online news team? Email us at tips@the-sun.co.uk or call 0207 782 4368 . You can WhatsApp us on 07810 791 502. We pay for videos too. Click here to upload yours.