IT WAS of great concern to learn that the government is considering severe cuts to the NHS particularly involving casualty and elderly services in a response to the anticipated drastic overspend of some £22 billion by 2020.
It is already well known that we spend much less per head on the UK population than countries in Europe and it is also well known that closure of units with centralisation saves very little money at the same time as seriously inconveniencing the public.
Also alarming is the refusal of the government to respond to questions regarding the potential loss of services under the Freedom of Information Act. They state they are prepared to consult but the timescale is relatively short and without appropriate debate the worry is that cuts might be imposed. This is particularly alarming in the light of past experience of Kidderminster having fought so long and hard with the support of Richard Taylor through Health Concern to retain basic services and be rewarded by a bran new treatment centre. It would be devastating to discover that we could be in danger of loss of these services at a stroke from central government.
It is essential that we remain fully alert to this possibility.
Kidderminster
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