Health Select Committee Chair Sarah Wollaston has sent a letter to NHS Digital asking the agency to withdraw from its data sharing agreement with the Home Office, The Independent reports. NHS Digital has been sending patient data to the Home Office in regards to immigration offences. Wollaston asserts NHS Digital has failed to consider the public interest with the agreement, as patients have become hesitant to seek treatment out of fear of igniting an investigation. "We are seriously concerned about the way NHS Digital has approached its duty to respect and promote confidentiality,” Wollaston wrote in the letter. “We call for a halt to the present system of information-sharing and a full review of the original memorandum of understanding with the Home Office.”
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