The Welsh and UK governments have a high level agreement on providing cross-border healthcare services, which was finalised in 2018.

While a majority of patient flow is from Wales into England, it’s not entirely one-way traffic. Around 21,000 English residents are registered at Welsh GP surgeries (below), while some Welsh hospitals are centres of excellence for specialist treatment covering the entirity of south-west Britain (Morriston Hospital’s burns unit, for example).

There are differences in the reasons as well. Welsh patients being treated in England are proportionally more likely to be there for a pre-planned in-patient or out-patient appointment. English patients in Wales are more likely to be emergency admissions, or for specialist/”other” treatment.

There have been concerns that Welsh-resident patients are waiting longer for treatment at English hospitals because Welsh health boards have delayed funding. There have also been specific concerns about a lack of cross-compatibility with data collection and digital technologies such as the NHS app.

For many people living in border counties – particularly Powys – the closest general hospital (with or without an A&E department) is in England. This means most routine hospital appointments are made there. 

There’s more information below.