Story: Kath Swinney
In December the Messenger highlighted the case of Aman Ali, a refused asylum seeker, who was badly injured and received a massive bill from the Northern General Hospital (see 'Writing for a Community Newspaper'). This bill has now been written off thanks to the support from his friends.
Aman fell from 10m (about 30ft) and badly damaged five vertebrae. The treatment he received at the spinal unit saved his life. For two months he was lying in a special bed and rolled by machine. It was a long time before he could be touched. After a few months it still took 5 people to move him. By the time he was discharged he could stand for a few minutes and move about in a wheelchair thanks to the expert care at the spinal unit. He also had a bill for £95,000 because the government policy is that refused asylum seekers do not receive free care from the NHS.
A friend wrote to the Chief Executive of the Northern General Hospital, Andrew Cash OBE, and explained that the stress of the huge bill was having an adverse effect on Aman Ali’s health. This is the reply:
“Clearly Mr. Ali is unable to pay these costs, this organisation has therefore written off Mr. Ali’s costs. There remains a wider issue about how the NHS recovers these costs but it is out of the scope of this case.”
The letter had been copied to Mr Ali’s MP Richard Caborn, who has since been in touch to find out more about Aman Ali’s case. Thank you to the Messenger for supporting this case and to Andrew Cash who has shown us that human rights are still important at the Northern General. We feel he deserves his OBE! Thanks from Kath Swinney and Aman Ali.