Survive UK

Were you aware that British expats not eligible for free NHS treatment get charged 50% more than foreigners. Unbelievable.

I remember paying £350 a night for a hospital bed w/o the treatment but that was for a foreigner from Africa; outrageous !

No, please explain.

Phew… thank heavens that doesn’t apply to me… I’m not an Expat, but I am a French Immigrant with British Nationality… :wink:

EDIT: sorry @ROUSSELOT_Joyce_Ann … there’s been discussions about being Expat or French Immigrant… and your post made me chuckle.
I hope those who do not have S1 ensure they have travel insurance for any holiday visits etc… whether to UK or any other country.

That’s true if you are not eligible for an S1 - retirees with an S1 can still access NHS care while on a visit, free of charge.

You can also get free treatment if you have an EHIC card issued by France or another EU country, which you can apply for if you are registered with CPAM.

So I would think the only non-resident Brits who would get charged by the NHS would be those of working age who live in a country that doesn’t have a reciprocal healthcare agreement with the UK, or (for example) who have not been in France long enough to register for French healthcare?

This UK GOV web page explains the way it works:

I think that may be a misunderstanding - from the above link it does say that “Any treatment that may have to be paid for will be charged at 150% of the national NHS rate” - but that applies to any non-UK resident using the NHS, I don’t think it’s just for Brits who have moved abroad.

I do think the 150% rate is unjust but that’s what it is at the moment. Presumably it’s meant to deter people from travelling without travel (health) insurance cover.

At least they’re not going to fly you to Rwanda for treatment. :slight_smile:

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I’m pretty sure the point being made is not true but I can’t be 100% because on my screen the post seems a bit jumbled.

Sorry - several typos made it gobbly de gook!

The only bits that I picked up were :slight_smile:

UK nationals who no longer live in the UK

Because the NHS is a residency-based system, under NHS rules UK nationals who move abroad on a permanent basis lose their entitlement to free NHS healthcare.

UK nationals living and working in EU countries, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Switzerland on or before 31 December 2020 and their family members may be eligible to use NHS services without charge.

UK nationals who moved to the EU on or after 1 January 2021 should not expect to use NHS services for free when visiting the UK unless they have an EHIC, PRC or S2 to show that their healthcare costs are funded by the EU country where they reside, or another exemption applies.

Any treatment that may have to be paid for will be charged at 150% of the national NHS rate.

It’s all a bit much for me! I am a Brit and lived out of the UK from age 20 till 60 but still using the NHS whenever I went home. At 60, because I hadn’t seen my doctor for 5 years, all my records and Medical card were ‘destroyed’ by the NHS Central Office (which is infuriating)). Since then, the same surgery has registered me as a temporary patient each time.

All that was before the dreaded Brexit. Now, it seems we are being punished for abandoning our residences in UK and treated like flotsam and jetsam. Not that long since everyone and his uncle flocked to the UK to use the NHS for free, even the Oligarchs. Maybe that was part of the reason why the NHS imploded.

These days, I have British friends coming over here to get things like scans done: couple of weeks waiting list and average cost is €400. What I have been told is that UK prices go from £200 to £1,500 and I know for a fact that a 3 month wait is quite minimal. I know that for sure -that caused one of my kids to end up paraplegic from cancer.

Maybe Rwanda might be a good bet!

Joyce I’m a bit confused as to your status with this - are you currently a permanent resident in France and registered with CPAM?

If so, as I understand it, you can get an EHIC card and any treatment you have in the UK will be on the same basis as treatment in France (i.e. 80% and top up by a mutuelle). You might have to pay upfront but then should be reimbursed.

Is there a reason why you need to go to the UK for treatment - is it not obtainable in France?

Or are you now back in the UK? if so, the same web page that I linked to says that any UK citizens who have returned to the UK to live there on a permanent basis are immediately entitled to normal free NHS care.

Hello Chris,
I have a CPAM and have an out-of-date EHIC card so I a VERY glad to hear what you are saying. I am only worried about tripping on an escalator or such whilst holidaying in the UK. I wouldn’t go near the NHS unless it’s an emergency.

If this is correct then Brexit didn’t do us any harm on this score and once we have beef from Arentinia, lamb for New Zealand, butter from Australia, Eggs from Canada,Coffee from Jamaica and so many other things I remember from my childhood, appearing on the shelves in Blighty, I might feel less angry about Brexit. Well forget Argentina, I guess!

Can the thread be closed please as it’s utter nonsense.

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That’s seems rather hard to imagine. Are you sure they weren’t just sent to iron mountain?

Ok that sounds positive - get yourself a new EHIC card (and some travel insurance - EHIC doesn’t cover everything) and you should be absolutely fine on your next visit to the UK.

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Well we still get all those things as we did before Brexit - the “great new trade deals” that the Tories have negotiated haven’t really changed anything much, despite what they say.

It’s the UK’s relations and trade with Europe that have changed for the worse.

Anyway I hope we have allayed your fears about having an accident in the UK at least.

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Why on earth would anyone living in France, or indeed that nearby and increasingly insignificant archipelago, want butter from Australia?

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Perhaps to make an upside-down cake?

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No, absolutely. It was the nurse in the Medical Centre who looked me up on her computer where I had been registered for donkey’s years. She said they only hung on to them for a certain length of time then sent then and they were destroyed, I was expecting to hear’filed’ but no such luck.

I have already applied for my EHIC card. Thank you so much.

Incidentally, I had looked at holiday insurance and the difference between 1 comany and another was ridiculous. Also, some firms won’t offer any cover for the country of your nationality.

Just because demi-sel isn’t salty enough for me !

Maybe not in the only shops I could afford - Lidl and Aldi !

Was that shot fired at anyone in particular?