PATIENTS accessing healthcare across the border in England are not “refugees” from the NHS in Wales, Carwyn Jones said.

The First Minister defended claims that the Welsh NHS lagged behind England during questions at the Senedd in Cardiff Bay.

Speaking yesterday, he told fellow AMs: “It has always been the case that Welsh patients have accessed services in England. We have always paid for people to use those services because it’s important they are able to access good services as close to them as possible. [They] are not refugees. They are people who use the NHS in another part of the UK and the Welsh Government pays for them.”

In border areas such as the east of Monmouthshire, it may often be closer for patients to access healthcare across the border.

UK Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has previously claimed Welsh patients get a second class service.

Carwyn Jones said: “The only person who has ever questioned Welsh patients using the English NHS and the Welsh NHS paying for those patients is Jeremy Hunt. And I can say clearly to him, it has always been the case that Welsh patients have accessed services in England. We have always paid for people to use those services because it’s important they are able to access good services as close to them as possible. Indeed there is a flow that goes the other way as well.”

South East Wales AM Lindsay Whittle said there had been issues in the past with Welsh patients accessing treatment in England because the exchange of information was not good enough. He asked: “What progress is being made during this review to make the electronic information systems in Wales compatible with those in England?”

Mr Jones replied: “We believe the problems are more on the English side than our side but discussions are ongoing.”

He said patients from England also came to Wales for treatment, giving the Burns Unit at Morriston Hospital in Swansea as an example which treats people from the South West of England as well as Wales. “There should be no difficulty with patients accessing services in England or patients from England accessing services in Wales. It’s a well established principal,” he said.

Aled Roberts AM asked: “I understand the current protocol is about to be renegotiated. The Welsh Affairs Select committee reported there hasn’t been sufficient discussion between councils and health boards in England and Wales in terms of some of the cross border changes.”

Mr Jones responded: “We are not developing a new protocol. There is a review of the protocol itself in order to ensure it’s relevant and developed in the appropriate manner. Discussions are ongoing in order to ensure the protocol is updated and improved.”