The run up to the Brexit referendum saw Leave campaigners such as Boris Johnson claiming that uncontrolled immigration puts “unsustainable pressure on our vital public services” including the NHS. But the evidence suggests that people from abroad are not heavy users of NHS services and that the costs of their care can be recovered anyway.
Now that the UK has decided to leave the EU, there are likely to be adverse impacts for the NHS. UK residents are likely to suffer the consequences, mainly because the NHS will struggle to deliver the level of care to which we have been accustomed. There are three potential fallouts. First, UK residents may have to pay more if they need treatment while on holiday in Europe. Second, it will be more difficult to recruit NHS staff. Third, the NHS is less likely to receive the funding it needs.