Immigration officials to continue to seek NHS England patient data

Ministers reject calls to suspend practice amid fears it is stopping migrants seeking medical help

Ministers have rejected a call from MPs to immediately suspend the disclosure of confidential NHS patient data to the Home Office to trace potential immigration offenders despite evidence it is deterring migrants in England from seeking medical help.

A joint letter from Home Office and health ministers to the chair of the Commons health select committee discloses that 1,297 requests for non-clinical details of patients, including home addresses, were made in the past three months by immigration officials trying to trace individuals with whom they had lost contact.

Continue reading... February 28, 2018 at 09:27PM