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CAN BRITS GET DENTAL,OPTICAL TREATMENT WHEN VISITING UK

CAN BRITS GET DENTAL,OPTICAL TREATMENT WHEN VISITING UK

Old Jan 8th 2009, 4:39 pm
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Default CAN BRITS GET DENTAL,OPTICAL TREATMENT WHEN VISITING UK

Hi i,ve never been back since i moved here 3 yrs ago but am planning to go sometime this year with my family.
I still own a house in england . Can we visit a dentist , optician + Doctor or will we have to pay. My kids r all under 16 .
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Old Jan 8th 2009, 4:48 pm
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Default Re: CAN BRITS GET DENTAL,OPTICAL TREATMENT WHEN VISITING UK

Since you are not be a resident of the UK I personally would take out medical insurance - same as you would if your are a UK resident visiting across the pond. Emergency treatment in the UK is free but thats all I think. Better to be safe than bankrupt.

Most dentists in the UK are private so I would think that Canada would be cheaper even with the exchange rate (and especially if you have medical insurance here).

Do you think you will need to visit an optician while on holiday to the uk? If not, I would still think it's cheaper here in Canada since you earn Canadian dollars.

Enjoy your trip home catching up with friends and family
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Old Jan 8th 2009, 6:08 pm
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Default Re: CAN BRITS GET DENTAL,OPTICAL TREATMENT WHEN VISITING UK

Originally Posted by ENGLANDIA
Hi i,ve never been back since i moved here 3 yrs ago but am planning to go sometime this year with my family.
I still own a house in england . Can we visit a dentist , optician + Doctor or will we have to pay. My kids r all under 16 .
You will have to pay - why would you think otherwise?
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Old Jan 8th 2009, 8:59 pm
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Default Re: CAN BRITS GET DENTAL,OPTICAL TREATMENT WHEN VISITING UK

Originally Posted by ENGLANDIA
Hi i,ve never been back since i moved here 3 yrs ago but am planning to go sometime this year with my family.
I still own a house in england . Can we visit a dentist , optician + Doctor or will we have to pay. My kids r all under 16 .
The NHS is free to Residence of the UK so it just depends on whether you are going back for 2 weeks or over six months i guess...I don't personally think that they would reject you as long as you can give them a UK address but it is a moral question mroe than anything else.
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Old Jan 8th 2009, 9:49 pm
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Default Re: CAN BRITS GET DENTAL,OPTICAL TREATMENT WHEN VISITING UK

Originally Posted by livermanl
The NHS is free to Residence of the UK so it just depends on whether you are going back for 2 weeks or over six months i guess...I don't personally think that they would reject you as long as you can give them a UK address but it is a moral question mroe than anything else.
My sister in-law is a UK citizen in living in the US. Every time she comes back for a holiday she goes to the dentist/doctor etc and gets stuff done. They don't bat an eyelid.
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Old Jan 8th 2009, 9:55 pm
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Default Re: CAN BRITS GET DENTAL,OPTICAL TREATMENT WHEN VISITING UK

http://www.expatnetwork.com/?ID=45
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Old Jan 8th 2009, 9:55 pm
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Default Re: CAN BRITS GET DENTAL,OPTICAL TREATMENT WHEN VISITING UK

Originally Posted by bodgerx
My sister in-law is a UK citizen in living in the US. Every time she comes back for a holiday she goes to the dentist/doctor etc and gets stuff done. They don't bat an eyelid.
They will one day.
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Old Jan 8th 2009, 10:00 pm
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Default Re: CAN BRITS GET DENTAL,OPTICAL TREATMENT WHEN VISITING UK

Originally Posted by fledermaus
They will one day.
...only if you are daft enough to say that you are a non-resident (apparently), and how likely is it that anyone will even think of asking you the question if you are still registered with the Doctor or Dentist?
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Old Jan 8th 2009, 10:07 pm
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Default Re: CAN BRITS GET DENTAL,OPTICAL TREATMENT WHEN VISITING UK

Originally Posted by spooooook
...only if you are daft enough to say that you are a non-resident (apparently), and how likely is it that anyone will even think of asking you the question if you are still registered with the Doctor or Dentist?
Some patients mention in passing that they live elsewhere, in the course of a conversation with a health care practitioner. The GP's receptionists may know them, someone in the waiting room may know that they live abroad. You can get found out and sent a bill.

It's a shame that people who do it aren't prosecuted for fraud.
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Old Jan 8th 2009, 10:08 pm
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Default Re: CAN BRITS GET DENTAL,OPTICAL TREATMENT WHEN VISITING UK

Originally Posted by spooooook
...only if you are daft enough to say that you are a non-resident (apparently), and how likely is it that anyone will even think of asking you the question if you are still registered with the Doctor or Dentist?
Do you not have some sort of identification number for NHS and doesn't anyone ask for it when you go to a hospital, doctors office or anything?

Surely there must be some way of telling if a person is eligible for service or not.
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Old Jan 8th 2009, 10:12 pm
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Default Re: CAN BRITS GET DENTAL,OPTICAL TREATMENT WHEN VISITING UK

Originally Posted by Steve_P
Do you not have some sort of identification number for NHS and doesn't anyone ask for it when you go to a hospital, doctors office or anything?

Surely there must be some way of telling if a person is eligible for service or not.
No, there is no requirement to show an NHS card or to know your number. I don't have a card. You merely register with your name and address at the hospital. There is no routine mechanism for billing in the NHS, no proof of eligibility. If I realised that someone wasnt resident then I would give them the relevant forms to complete and then eventually a bill would be sent to the patient. Its very easy to defraud the system.
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Old Jan 8th 2009, 10:15 pm
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Default Re: CAN BRITS GET DENTAL,OPTICAL TREATMENT WHEN VISITING UK

Originally Posted by fledermaus
Some patients mention in passing that they live elsewhere, in the course of a conversation with a health care practitioner. The GP's receptionists may know them, someone in the waiting room may know that they live abroad. You can get found out and sent a bill.

It's a shame that people who do it aren't prosecuted for fraud.
As the article says:

"However, people of any nationality coming to live in the UK are entitled to the same NHS services as any other citizen, as long as they are coming to make this their permanent home. This entitlement begins as soon as the person arrives in the UK.

So, if Mr Johnson came back to the UK 'permanently' (and, of course, his plans could change) then he should be able to receive treatment free of charge. But declaring himself a permanent resident of the UK again could cause him tax problems.

If his name is still on the books of a UK medical practice, the GP - who may not know he is non-resident - could refer him for free treatment."
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Old Jan 8th 2009, 10:36 pm
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Default Re: CAN BRITS GET DENTAL,OPTICAL TREATMENT WHEN VISITING UK

Originally Posted by spooooook
As the article says:

"However, people of any nationality coming to live in the UK are entitled to the same NHS services as any other citizen, as long as they are coming to make this their permanent home. This entitlement begins as soon as the person arrives in the UK.

So, if Mr Johnson came back to the UK 'permanently' (and, of course, his plans could change) then he should be able to receive treatment free of charge. But declaring himself a permanent resident of the UK again could cause him tax problems.

If his name is still on the books of a UK medical practice, the GP - who may not know he is non-resident - could refer him for free treatment."
Yes I read it.
When Mr Johnson gets to the hospital and lets slip that he lives abroad, Fledermaus the radiographer gets him to fill out a form as he is non resident. So he gets a bill.

It happens.
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Old Jan 8th 2009, 10:36 pm
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Default Re: CAN BRITS GET DENTAL,OPTICAL TREATMENT WHEN VISITING UK

Originally Posted by fledermaus
It's a shame that people who do it aren't prosecuted for fraud.
Why should British citizens who choose to live abroad and obtain free treatment when visiting home be prosecuted for fraud? They are still British citizens, will hold a British passport, and more to the point, are likely to have paid into the system for many years before emigrating.

Surely it is the non-British nationals who exploit the NHS by obtaining free treatment having never paid anything into the system (i.e. the "health tourists") that should be targetted?
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Old Jan 8th 2009, 10:42 pm
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Default Re: CAN BRITS GET DENTAL,OPTICAL TREATMENT WHEN VISITING UK

at what point should the "entitlement" stop....someone who moved here when they were a child probably didn't pay anything someone who moved here when they were 20 and lived here for 20 years - should they still be entitled. The NHS is an insurance its there for the residents of the UK IMO once you move abroad you're 'entitlements" should stop - because if all the Brits who were abroad went back for "free" treatment the system would collapse.

As it is my mother and father are visiting for a holiday - they lived in the UK and paid taxes for 35 years - they are paying $700 ins each for a 5 week visit
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