Portugal's Algarve Health Unit Owed €1.2 million by Foreign Patients

An audit by the Inspeção‑Geral de Atividades em Saúde (IGAS) found that the Unidade Local de Saúde (ULS) Algarve has €1,234,358 in unpaid emergency‑care charges for non‑resident foreign patients for 2023 and 2024. The audit recorded total revenue of about €2.355 million from such services over the two‑year period, but highlighted significant shortcomings in patient admission procedures that hampered correct billing and collection.

The number of emergency episodes involving foreign patients grew by 7.8%, rising from 17,736 in 2023 to 19,111 in 2024, with a marked seasonal peak during the summer. The majority of these non‑resident patients were from the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Ireland, and most were active‑age adults (18‑65). IGAS warned that the current invoicing and collection mechanisms are inefficient, affecting the financial regularisation of the Algarve health system.