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Seminar

Migrants and the NHS: should they pay, and how?

The session will be livestreamed

The NHS was created based upon three core principles: that it met the needs of everyone; was free at the point of delivery; and was based on clinical need and not ability to pay. There was no inbuilt mechanism for charging anyone for its use. 

Seventy years later, the country's needs and expectations are different: healthcare costs have magnified, and migration has risen. This has led to questions such as, 'we don't get free treatment overseas, so why should we treat everyone free of charge here?'. 

Since the 2000s, a system for charging overseas visitors has been introduced. This started with the exclusion of a number of vulnerable groups from being eligible for free healthcare, including failed asylum seekers, undocumented migrants and those who had overstayed their visa. This has been gradually extended and since October 2017 ineligible patients with non-urgent conditions are now legally obliged to pay for their care upfront. To determine eligibility, everyone must be asked for ID. Care for treatment that is urgent or immediately necessary remains chargeable but must be provided whether or not the person can pay. This system and its implementation have been criticised. 

This seminar aims to discuss; how can we have a fair and transparent system that is non-discriminatory and acceptable to all? What should this look like? 

A panel of speakers from a range of backgrounds will share their views and invite the audience to discuss the subject. 

Chair:
- Dr. Miriam Orcutt, Institute for Global Health, University College London and Affiliate, Health in Humanitarian Crises Centre, LSHTM 
- Professor Richard Sullivan, Kings College London

Speakers:
- Dr Jessica Potter, Clinical Research Fellow, Barts Institute of Population Health Science, Queen Mary University London
- Dr Mark Stevenson, ex lead analyst at NHS improvements (he is no longer a representative of the organisation)
- Anna Miller, UK Policy & Advocacy Manager, Doctors of the World
- Sue Collins, TB specialist case worker, Homerton Hospital.

Speaker Biographies:
Dr Miriam Orcutt is a medical doctor, academic researcher and humanitarian consultant. She is coordinator of the UCL-Lancet Commission on Migration and Health, an affiliate at the Health in Humanitarian Crises Centre, LSHTM, a Visiting Research Fellow at the Conflict and Health Research Group, King’s College London, and a Steering Committee Member of the Syria Public Health Network. She has been awarded an ESRC Studentship to complete a PhD on health system response to mass displacement with a focus on refugee mental health. Her current work focuses on migrant and refugee health, forced migration, mass displacement, and health systems. 

Dr JessPotter is a Respiratory Registrar in the final year of her MRC funded PhD which explores access to healthcare for migrants with TB in the UK. Jess currently co-ordinates Medact’s Refugee Solidarity Group and is a member of Docs Not Cops. She actively campaigns to raise awareness about TB and for migrants’ right to healthcare. She has spoken about these issues on BBC radio and television and has written for the Independent, Guardian and The Conversation.

Sue Collins is a Research Fellow at LSHTM, a Lecturer in Community-based Medical Education at QMUL, and a TB specialist case worker at the Homerton for the previous 12 years. She is also a member of the NICE Guidelines Development Group on hard to reach populations

This seminar is part of the Global Health Advocacy series, held by the Alma Mata global health network and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. Doors will open at 5.45pm.

Admission

Admission
Free to attend but registration is required, please follow the link below.

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