UK Home Office using NHS to find migrants

Britain’s Home Office has been granted access to the National Health Service (NHS) records of thousands of people over the past four years in a bid to track down undocumented immigrants.

A report published on Sunday in British daily The Guardian revealed that the Home Office had been accessing the medical records of more than 6,900 undocumented immigrants since 2010.

According to the report, British medical records are subject to data protection based on law; however, new information has revealed that the Home Office has applied a “little-noticed” exemption in the rules to access patients’ non-clinical records without a court order.

The exemption allows authorities to find out where and when people have used a health service.

In addition to the Home Office, the report states that the British police forces and the National Crime Agency have also accessed NHS records in pursuit of certain individuals.

The revelations have prompted concerns on the part of patients’ and migrants’ rights groups.

Katherine Murphy, the chief executive of the Patients Association, said immigration and law enforcement officials’ use of NHS records could discourage people from seeking medical treatment for themselves or their families, and therefore create a public health risk.

“We are concerned to learn that the Home Office is seeking to track down potential immigration offenders by requesting their medical records,” said Murphy.

“There is the very real danger that some patients may put off seeking medical help for fear of their details being leaked. Furthermore, children may suffer if parents are reluctant to take them for treatment when they are ill,” Murphy added.

The revelation of the Home Office’s use of medical records emerged earlier this month when a separate report found that, between July 2010 and December 2013, the department made more than 12,500 requests for records from the healthcare’s National Back Office, which holds basic information on all registered NHS patients.