Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent discussions he has had with relevant stakeholders on the potential merits of expanding reciprocal healthcare arrangements with the EU to include elective treatment.

Answered by Will Quince

As a result of the EU-UK Trade Cooperation Agreement, the United Kingdom benefits from a comprehensive reciprocal healthcare agreement with the European Union.

The arrangements includes the “S2” planned treatment funding route which entitles UK residents to National Health Service funding for planned state healthcare treatment in an EU country if certain criteria, set out in the Agreement, are met. This covers elective treatment.

Treatment must normally be provided on the NHS, be available on the treating country’s state healthcare scheme, and the same treatment cannot be provided to the patient on the NHS within a time period that is medically justifiable.

There are currently no plans to further expand reciprocal healthcare arrangements with the EU.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what purpose his Department has commissioned legal advice from Pinsent Masons LLP on matters relating to (a) DHSC funding of overseas healthcare and (b) the charging of healthcare provided in the UK.

Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)

The Department commissioned advice and training from Pinsent Masons LLP on the powers available to the Department, health boards and clinical commissioning groups to fund healthcare abroad and how these interrelate.