Part 6: Miscellaneous International Healthcare Section 162: International Healthcare arrangements
This section amends the Healthcare (European Economic Area and Switzerland Arrangements) Act 2019 ("HEEASAA") to enable the Government and the Devolved Authorities to implement comprehensive reciprocal healthcare agreements with countries outside the EEA and Switzerland.
	Subsections (1) and (7) change the title of the Healthcare (European Economic Area and Switzerland Arrangements) Act 2019 to the Healthcare (International Arrangements) Act 2019 (HIAA)so it is clear that the legal framework for implementing comprehensive healthcare arrangements in the Act is no longer restricted to arrangements with the EEA and Switzerland.
	Subsections (3) and (4) remove the wide power to make healthcare payments in section 1 HEEASAA and the power to make regulations in relation to healthcare and healthcare agreements in section 2 HEEASAA and replace them with a healthcare agreements and payments discretionary regulation-making power. The previous powers were created to support people to access healthcare in the EEA and Switzerland in the event of leaving the EU without an agreement. As the UK Government has now agreed social security coordination provisions covering healthcare in the EU in the Withdrawal Agreement and the Trade and Cooperation Agreement, these measures are no longer needed. The UK Government has also reached an agreement with Switzerland to continue reciprocal healthcare provisions.
	The amendments provide the Secretary of State (new section 2(1) HIAA) and the devolved authorities (new section 2A(1) HIAA) with a power to make regulations (subject to draft affirmative procedure) that make provision for the purpose of giving effect to a healthcare agreement, including provision about payments.
	The Secretary of State will also be able to make regulations for the payment of healthcare provided in another country where the healthcare is outside the scope of a healthcare agreement but only if the Secretary of State thinks the payment is justified by exceptional circumstances and the healthcare is provided in a country with which the UK has a healthcare agreement (new section 2(2) HIAA). This discretionary power, could, for example, be exercised to pay for a specific, urgent treatment which falls marginally outside the scope of an agreed healthcare agreement.
	New sections 2(4) and 2(5) HIAA set out certain provision that may be under the regulations. Section 2(4) states that regulations made under section 2 may include provision about administrative arrangements (including evidential requirements). Section 2(5) states that regulations made under new section 2 HIAA are capable of being used to confer or delegate functions to a "relevant public authority" (which is defined at new section 2(7) HIAA) and Scottish and Welsh health boards.
	New section 2A(2) and (4) HIAA describe the circumstances in which a devolved authority (defined in new section 2A(3) HIAA as the Scottish Ministers, Welsh Ministers and a Northern Ireland department) can use the power in section 2A(1) HIAA to make regulations. New section 2A(2) HIAA provides that a devolved authority may not make provision under section 2A(1) unless the provision is within the devolved authority’s competence. Devolved competence is defined at new section 2A(4) HIAA.
	Among other things, regulations made under new section 2A HIAA are capable of being used to confer or delegate functions to a "public authority" (section 2A(6) HIAA) which is defined at new section 2A(8) HIAA.
	New section 2B HIAA sets out that consent of a Minister of the Crown is required if a Devolved Authority is making a provision using the power in new section .2A HIAA and the provision, if contained in primary legislation made by the devolved legislatures, would require the consent of a Minister of the Crown. That could be where the relevant devolved legislature’s legislative powers were subject to a consent requirement, or where the devolved authority would normally require consent to make such a provision via secondary legislation. This requirement for consent will not apply if the devolved authority already has power to make such provision using secondary legislation without needing the consent of the Minister of the Crown.
	Subsection (5) amends the definition of "healthcare agreement" in section 3 of HIAA so that it is clear it includes any agreement regarding healthcare provided in another country or territory outside of the UK, whether payments are included in the agreement or not.
	Subsection (6) amends the regulations and directions section of HIAA (section 7) to reflect the existence of the new regulation-making powers and ensure that they are subject to the draft affirmative procedure.
	The territorial extent and application of this section is England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.