llegal immigrant are among those receiving priority NHS treatment in as little as 15 minutes despite long queues for Brits under a policy that critics say “sums up broken Britain”. The Telegraph has more.
It’s Thursday evening, just before 10pm, and the A&E at University College Hospital in central London is heaving.
All the seats are taken, leaving dozens of patients standing or perched on a ledge next to the window, visible to passers-by. There’s already a queue of around 70 patients, and it’s only likely to get longer as the night goes on.
It’s not an unusual sight in Britain. Official NHS figures reveal at least one in four people had to wait more than four hours to be seen in A&E in November. More than 45,000 patients were delayed longer than 12 hours.
Yet here at UCLH, there is one way you can get seen earlier. Indeed, for certain members of society, you can get assessed in just 15 minutes.
That privilege goes to undocumented migrants, as well as the homeless and drug addicts, according to its website. Under a scheme called 987 Inclusion Health, patients within those categories needing an “urgent” assessment can ask for an appointment at A&E and be bumped up the queue on arrival. After initial tests, they are taken directly to a consultant for a “more thorough evaluation”.
