DEFEND PRIMARY HEALTHCARE

IF YOU WISH TO CONTACT THE CAMPAIGN SPOKESPERSON OR YOUR LOCAL GROUP, PLEASE FIND CONTACT DETAILS HERE

Defend Primary Healthcare is a campaign by the Global Health Advocacy Project. To find more about the group, please click here.

History of the Campaign

Click here for a history of the Defend Primary Healthcare campaign which summarises the legal situation - it's not that bad!

Update - 13 November

You can now download our new guidance on the laws and regulations governing access to NHS primary services for refused asylum seekers and undocumented migrants from the box on the right hand side of the page.

Update - 31 October

We have submitted written evidence to the Joint Committee on Human Rights call for evidence for legislative scrutiny of the Citizenship, Immigration and Borders Bill. You can download the submission from the box at the top of the page.

Update - 17 September

We have just submitted written evidence to the Home Affairs Committee Enquiry ‘Managing Migration: the Points-Based System’, whose scope has been widened to examine the new 'Simplification Bill', which will contain a section on access to services. You can download our submission from the box at the top of the page.

Update - 1 August

NEW MEDSIN REPORT OUT NOW!

Press Coverage - 'GPs demand right to treat refugees', Observer, 3 August

Press Coverage - 'Uncaring, unethical – and a risk to us all', Independent, 4 August

Press Coverage - 'Free for All?', British Medical Journal, 1 August

The 2004 Department of Health consultation on charging in primary care was buried by the Government. On 1 August we released a report describing a sample of submissions to the consultation and our ongoing efforts to access the remaining submissions using the Freedom of Information Act. You can access the report, its executive summary and a press release by clicking here.

About the Campaign

Access Denied

Access Denied Conference, London, 23 February Refused asylum seekers, undocumented migrant workers, victims of trafficking and recipients of Section IV Support are among the most vulnerable people in the UK. Currently GPs are able to register these people as patients. An ongoing government review may remove this entitlement.

Join Medsin’s campaign against these proposals because…

  • Denial of care will lead to avoidable deaths and suffering
  • There is no evidence of significant levels of health tourism; this group are young, mostly healthy, and are little burden on services
  • Doctors are not immigration officers, our first duty is to our patients
  • Such a system would be difficult and expensive to administer
  • Primary care is cheap and prevents expensive A&E attendences
  • Unvaccinated children and missed diagnoses of infectious disease will lead to greater transmission of measles, TB and other diseases, which will harm us all

To learn more about the campaign, please read Medact's briefing (a pdf file).

For a history of what we've been up to and an up to date description of the current legal situation, read the Defend Primary Healthcare campaign history.

April's Judicial Review

Please note that since April 2008, the situation for refused asylum seekers has changed as a result of a case in the high court. At present, most refused asylum seekers should be elligible for NHS care. However, the Government have appealed this decision and this appeal will be heard in November 2008. For more detail please see this letter from the Deparment of Health.

If you encounter anybody in posestion of an IS96 who has been refused care, please suggest they show a copy of this letter to those refusing care. We are also collating case studies of people with IS96 forms who have been refused care - please get in touch if you would like more information about this.

Some of the resources on this website were written prior to this judgement. We will update them soon. If you are using them, you may like to ammend them to take into account the new ruling. Please note that undocumented migrants and victims of trafficking are not affected by the ruling.

How to get involved

1) Click here to see if there is a local group in your city.

2) Consider joining the national campaign mailing list (if you are busy you can chose to receive a daily digest).

3) Join the Facebook group and invite all your friends.

4) Email us at access@medsin.org about setting up a branch at your university or getting involved at a national level.

Take Action

Contribute to the campaign, even if you just have a couple of minutes!

2 minutes:

2 hours:

  • WRITE or TALK to your MP about the proposed changes of restrictions to access – See Medsin’s Campaigns Toolkit
  • Talk to healthcare providers at your clinical placement to inform them of implications of a policy of denial relevant to their specialty.
  • Write an article for a student or local paper to help raise awareness. We can give you tips on what to include, sources to use etc, or download the 'stock article'

2 weeks:

  • Organise a talk at your Medsin branch – we can help with speakers, PowerPoint presentations and resources. Contact access@medsin.org

Longer term:

  • Set up a DPH branch at your university.
  • Talk to us about helping out at a national level
  • Find out more about these issues and more in our reading guide and get involved with relevant local groups and organisations – Crossing Borders can help you with this.
  • Encourage doctors, relevant NGOs, organisations working with refugees and asylum seekers etc. to start speaking out and actively campaigning. Help inform the debate with relevant information and evidence.
  • Encourage these organisations to respond to future government consultations on the issue.

We are working with Crossing Borders to help raise awareness of the issue of access to healthcare, and implications of this such as destitution. Please get involved in both if this interests you.

DPH Page Links

Campaign history and brief

Reading Guide

Contacts and Local Groups

Our report: Proposals to Exclude Overseas Visitors from Eligibility to Free NHS Primary Health Care Services (GHAP August 2008) www.Wherestheconsultation.org

The 2004 Consultation - 38 submissions we obtained

Freedom of Information - Our correspondance with the Department of Health regarding the 2004 consultation

Last updated on Monday 17 November 2008 at 22:03.