A new report released this week by Doctors of the World has revealed the threat to the health of pregnant migrant women in the UK posed by NHS charging policies. The report found that two-thirds of pregnant users of the charity’s drop-in clinic in east London, who are mostly undocumented migrants or asylum seekers, had not received antenatal care until their second trimester. Half had no care for 20 weeks or longer. 
Nearly a third of women in the report were billed for their maternity care, one as much as £6,000.
‘These findings indicate an unacceptable inequality in our health system,’ Lucy Jones, an author of the study, says. ‘We must continue to improve access to healthcare for all mothers regardless of their wealth or immigration status.’ The average time the women in the report had been in the UK before becoming pregnant was longer than 5 years, debunking the myth of ‘health tourists’.
Maternity care in the UK is classified as ‘immediately necessary’ by the Department of Health and cannot be denied to any woman regardless of her means to pay for care. However, charges are imposed on those who are not ‘ordinarily resident’ in the UK and hospitals often pursue unpaid fees by means of debt collection. As the report states, NHS charges often deter vulnerable women from seeking care in pregnancy and can lead to undiagnosed health conditions and serious childbirth complications for woman and baby. One of the women in the report lost her premature baby after she did not access maternity care for 7 months.
In the past year, Birthrights has been receiving increasing numbers of enquiries from women who have been charged for the care. In many of these cases the charges have been levied unlawfully and contrary to government guidance. It appears that the funding crisis in the NHS and the focus on so-called ‘health tourism’ is leading to unjustified and oppressive charging decisions by NHS Trusts.
Our factsheet on foreign nationals and maternity care explains the legal position. Further information is also available via Maternity Action.
For further information or advice on NHS charges, please contact us: info@birthrights.org.uk.