The Consultation on proposed changes to the contract monitoring information standards, which was instigated by NHS England, is designed to enable the DHSC to see how hospitals are charging migrants for accessing services.

Dr John Firth, BMA international committee chair, said: ‘The BMA has long called for a suspension of the current charging regulations, pending a review into the impact on individual and public health, and transparent published findings.

‘Our members are fully aware of the deterrent impact of the charging regime and associated data sharing policies – meaning some of the most vulnerable people in society are forced to avoid seeking healthcare that they desperately need. 

‘Healthcare and immigration enforcement should be completely separate. Doctors want to provide care to the person in front of them, not act as an extension to the border force.'

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: ‘It is right that overseas visitors and those who are not lawfully settled here contribute towards their treatment costs, as our health service is a residency-based system.'