National Health Service

The National Health Service (NHS) is the name commonly used to refer to the five single-payer publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom and the Isle of Man, collectively or individually, although only the health service in England uses the name 'National Health Service' without further qualification. The publicly-funded healthcare organisation in Northern Ireland does not use the term 'National Health Service'. Each system operates independently, and is politically accountable to the relevant devolved government of Scotland (Scottish Government), Wales (Welsh Assembly Government) and Northern Ireland (Northern Ireland Executive), and to the UK government for England. The United Kingdom has a reciprocal agreement with the Isle of Man National Health Service which will be reviewed by September 2010.

There is generally no discrimination when a patient resident in one country of the United Kingdom requires treatment in another. The consequent financial matters and paperwork of such inter-working are dealt with between the organisations involved and there is generally no personal involvement by the patient comparable to that which might occur when a resident of one European Union member country receives treatment in another.

For details of each of the four national health services in the United Kingdom, see:

• National Health Service (England),
• NHS Scotland,
• NHS Wales, and
• Health and Social Care in Northern Ireland.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• 'BIRTH OF THE NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE | How the state of the nation's health became a political ideal', a BBC Archive collection of programmes and documents.
• Celebrating 60 years of the NHS in Scotland (useful insight into the distinct development of public healthcare in Scotland)
• NHS Choices — The website for England's NHS
• Call for Manx reciprocal health agreement extension (news item about Manx NHS agreement)