CHARGING £77 for misuse of the Emergency Department risks people avoiding seeking urgent treatment which “could prove fatal”, a former Health Minister has said.
Age Concern Jersey chair Ben Shenton said that “no policy should ever put lives at risk due to financial barriers” and that he had rejected similar proposals during his time in office.
Published earlier this week, the government’s 2026 Budget document outlined plans to charge Islanders who attend the Emergency Department when care would be better administered by their GP. This would be at the same rate as the fees charged by Jersey Doctors on Call – £77 for Islanders and £97 for non-residents.
Under the ministerial plans, there would also be a £55 charge for missing an outpatient appointment – with it being estimated that around 12,000 patients fail to attend each year.
Mr Shenton said that these changes could have “unintended and potentially dire consequences for older adults in our community”.
He explained that, when he was Health Minister in 2008, he was presented with similar proposals to introduce Emergency Department charges but rejected them for “two key reasons”.
“First, I was unconvinced that the administrative burden of invoicing, payment collection, and managing appeals would result in meaningful revenue,” he said.
“Second – and more importantly – I was deeply concerned about the human cost.”
He pointed to the example of someone facing a rapidly progressing illness like meningitis, who cannot afford £77.
“The fear of incurring a fee might cause them to delay or avoid seeking urgent care, a decision that could prove fatal,” the former Health Minister said.
“No policy should ever put lives at risk due to financial barriers.”
Under the proposals, certain groups would not be charged for missing an outpatient appointment – including mental health patients, children, and those attending substance misuse clinics.
But Mr Shenton noted that the plans do not include specific exemptions or subsidies for elderly Islanders or those on low incomes – which he described as a “critical gap”.
Age Concern Jersey urged the government to introduce clear exemptions or subsidies for older adults, particularly those on fixed or low incomes.
The charity also called for a “robust education campaign” to help Islanders understand when Emergency Department visits are appropriate and what alternative services are available, and a “transparent and accessible appeals process” for those who believe they were unfairly charged.
Age Concern Jersey added that the government should monitor and publicly report the impact of these charges on healthcare access and outcomes for older adults.
The government has said that the proposed new health fees are intended to change behaviours, not raise revenue.
The budget states: “Given the scale of the pressures faced in Health and Care Jersey, steps need to be taken now to protect our frontline healthcare services.
“This includes bringing forward two new fees to be introduced during 2026 to help promote behavioural changes and reduce wasteful use of resources.”
The proposed 2026-2029 Budget includes plans for £381m of spending on healthcare next year – a rise of almost a fifth on 2024.
More than £60m – £15.6m a year until 2029 – was also earmarked to plug the department’s long-running deficit.
