#2026/122Northern Ireland adds hantavirus diseases to free treatment list for visitors
AI-generated summary for informational purposes only. Not legal advice. See the original source for the authoritative text.
Northern Ireland makes treatment for hantavirus diseases free of charge for visitors who are not ordinarily resident, when they receive Health Service care for that disease. The exemption covers hantavirus pulmonary or cardiopulmonary syndrome and haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome. Hospitals and health administrators must treat these diseases like other listed conditions where visitor charges do not apply. The exemption does not apply if someone appears to have travelled to Northern Ireland specifically to get that treatment.
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Key Changes
- Adds hantavirus diseases to the list of conditions for which visitors are not charged for Health Service treatment in Northern Ireland
- Specifically includes hantavirus pulmonary or cardiopulmonary syndrome and haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome
- Keeps the existing limit that the exemption does not cover people who travel to Northern Ireland specifically to obtain the treatment
Obligations
What this law requires
Do not make or recover charges from visitors not ordinarily resident in Northern Ireland for Health Service treatment provided in respect of hantavirus diseases, including hantavirus pulmonary or cardiopulmonary syndrome (HCPS) and haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS).
Update charging policies, systems, and Schedule 1 disease-exemption handling so that hantavirus diseases are treated as listed diseases for which visitor charges do not apply.
Apply the hantavirus charging exemption only to treatment for the listed hantavirus diseases and subject to the existing limitation in Regulation 4(2), including where the visitor appears to have travelled to Northern Ireland specifically to obtain that treatment.