Headlining in the Herald today, a warm story of a charity helping asylum seekers give birth. It’s very nice, touching, but missing a few things for a supposed headline news story rather than a cuddly women’s magazine.
Here’s something newsworthy though little reported at the time:
In September 2019:
The safety of vulnerable mothers and newborn babies [in England] is being put at risk by NHS fees that deter undocumented migrant women from accessing care, a new report from Maternity Action backed by the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) has warned. NHS packages for overseas pregnant women start at £7,000 for antenatal, pregnancy and postnatal care, but can rise to thousands of pounds if the mother or child experience complications.
In December 2019:
Tory measures to stop “health tourism” on the NHS have been linked to the deaths of three pregnant women [in England] in a major report that was delayed until after the election. The women all died after delays in seeking help because they mistakenly believed that they would have to pay for care under the government’s strict charging regime. They sought help in hospitals too late and died as a result of complications.
The situation in Scotland according to the BMJ in May 2019:
Of course, care does not have to be restricted in this way. In Scotland and in Wales, a different approach is being taken. There, “refused” asylum seekers and migrants whose status is deemed “irregular” have the same rights and entitlements to health care as the general population. A recent systematic review reported that policies restricting welfare entitlements increased the likelihood of poor self-rated health and mortality. We propose that, in the absence of such data, approaches in Scotland and Wales demonstrate that the provision of healthcare can be separated from migration policy and align with the principles of ensuring universal healthcare coverage for all. This should not only be welcomed, but strongly encouraged.
Might things have changed in England?
In June 2022:
New mothers are being charged up to £14,000 to give birth in England, according to a report on the experiences of migrant women who have been billed for NHS maternity services.
The report, published on Thursday by the healthcare charity Doctors of the World (DOTW), reveals that more than a third (37.8%) of the mothers surveyed – who include undocumented, refugee and asylum-seeking women – received a bill for maternity care after their babies were delivered, ranging from £296 to £14,000. Of that group, half were charged £7,000 or more.
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2022/jun/09/migrant-women-charged-up-to-14000-for-nhs-maternity-services-in-england
Interesting? Newsworthy?
Talking-up Scotland 'Albatraz' 
This is another example of the ‘hostile environment’ favoured by the Tories and only criticised by the media for not being hostile enough. It is inhumane and fascist. Indeed, the only ‘criticism’ heard about in ‘vox pops’ by people who condemn is that “THESE people (i.e. asylum seekers and migrants) have been taking our GOOD (sic) nature for granted for years, now ‘enough is enough. Let them drown in the sea. No-one asked them to come here.’
Of course, many people, probably the majority, are compassionate and sympathetic to the plight of people fleeing other countries and some do sterling work in welcoming migrants and in providing warmth and comfort. But the media and Tory narrative is of hostility.
Given the tone of Labour’s General Election Campaign of 2015, with its anti-immigration mugs, I am not sure and incoming Labour government under ‘human rights champion’ “Sir” Kier Starmer will be much different. Rachel Reeves would not want to ‘play games with the economy’, which is what ‘securonomics’ seems to mean. Labour, when in government has passed several pretty nasty pieces of legislation.
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Why don’t they just process asylum seekers more quickly and let them work.
Brexit has cost the economy £Billions. Rejoin.
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