Patients From Abroad Owe £150 Million In Unpaid NHS Bills

27 August 2019, 13:26

Two London hospitals are each owed more than £28 million
Two London hospitals are each owed more than £28 million. Picture: PA

The NHS has been left with £150 million of unpaid medical bills from overseas patients who have failed to pay their medical invoices.

A Freedom of Information request by the Daily Mail found that two London hospitals have unpaid bills of £28 million each.

King's College Hospital in South London has acquired £28.3 million in unpaid medical bills from foreign patients in the "last few years". One patient owes nearly £500, 000 in medical bills .

Bart's Health Trust, in east London, has £27.8 million in unpaid bills, with one patient owing £467, 000.

Since 2017 hospitals have been given requirements from the Department of Health to raise upfront invoices for overseas visitors who are not entitled to NHS funded care.

However, it was found that of the 91 hospitals who gave their data are collectively owed £149.5 million, and 23 of these are owed more than £1 million each.

It is believed that the figures could actually be a lot higher, as over 60 hospital trusts did not provide details of what they were owed.