£30m cost of unpaid bills for hospital

GREAT Ormond Street Hospital is chasing more than £30million in unpaid bills after treating patients from overseas, it has been revealed.

Britain’s top children’s hospital said a large proportion of the debt was owed by foreign governments rather than individual families.

Although managers would not reveal details of which countries they are chasing or how many patients have been treated without payment, they said they have taken legal action against one government or embassy to recover £1.5million.

The NHS hospital in central London is internationally renowned for treating seriously ill children, particularly those suffering from heart disease, cancer, epilepsy and kidney failure. Many governments in less developed countries pay for their patients to be treated at Great Ormond Street, rather than in their own hospitals, as the care is so much better.

A spokesman for Great Ormond Street Hospital said: ‘Very sick children from more than 90 countries receive private treatment at GOSH, many of whom are sponsored by their government because the specialist care they need is not available in their home country.

‘We have robust guarantees with governments and other international organisations to ensure their debt is recoverable and we are taking steps to ensure this is recovered in a more timely manner.’