BRITONS GUARANTEED HEALTHCARE - FOR NOW
Cover only guaranteed by Valencia until Brexit
THE VALENCIA government has clarified the situation of healthcare for British expats living in the region.
CBNews contacted the office of regional president Ximo Puig after several regional Spanish newspapers published reports on Tuesday suggesting that Sr Puig had guaranteed healthcare for life for Britons.
They claimed that Britons would be in the same position as ‘immigrants without documents’ who have been given SIP health cards by the regional government.
The articles were followed by a press release by the provincial Socialist party (PSOE) in Alicante, in which vice-secretary general Herick Campos evaluated as ‘very positive’ the actions of Valencia to ensure that Brexit affects British tourism and UK expats ‘as little as possible’.
“It is for this reason that Alicante Socialists believe it is necessary to guarantee residents’ right to healthcare,” he said. “It is important to keep residents who, in some municipalities, make up more than 50% of the population and, in many cases, have great spending power – and who are consumers who generate wealth and employment.”
Puig puts the record straight
A press officer working for Ximo Puig told CBNews on Tuesday that he would investigate the situation and comment the following day.
On Wednesday, he explained that no changes would be made to healthcare provision for expats until Britain leaves the European Union.
He noted that this process could take several years.
However, he stated that the Valencia government cannot guarantee what will happen after the UK pulls out because the negotiations have not yet started.
“We cannot make any decisions on this yet,” he said.
“We will have to wait and see what happens in the negotiations.”
He confirmed that it would be unwise for the regional gov- ernment to speculate on the issue.
At the same time, he said that the regional government wants to convey a message of ‘calm’ to British citizens living in the region.
Last week, Sr Puig sent an article to CBNews in which he expressed his affection for Brit- ish people and offered ‘reassurance’ to Britons living in the Valencia region.