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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| NHS top-up care ban under review | NHS top-up care ban under review |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| The policy of penalising patients who top up their NHS care with private treatment is to be reviewed, the government says. | The policy of penalising patients who top up their NHS care with private treatment is to be reviewed, the government says. |
| Health Secretary Alan Johnson has asked cancer tsar Professor Mike Richards to look at the issue. | Health Secretary Alan Johnson has asked cancer tsar Professor Mike Richards to look at the issue. |
| Some patients have found themselves banned from NHS care after paying for cancer drugs not available on the NHS. | Some patients have found themselves banned from NHS care after paying for cancer drugs not available on the NHS. |
| The government had argued that such a system of co-payments would create a two-tier service. | The government had argued that such a system of co-payments would create a two-tier service. |
| But it has now agreed to reconsider the issue and has given Professor Richards until October to report back. | But it has now agreed to reconsider the issue and has given Professor Richards until October to report back. |
| It is a very welcome decision. The ban on co-payments is cruel John Baron, Tory MP Q&A: NHS co-payments | It is a very welcome decision. The ban on co-payments is cruel John Baron, Tory MP Q&A: NHS co-payments |
| Currently, anyone who pays for any form of private treatment - even drugs unavailable on the NHS - can be barred from the normal package of NHS care. | Currently, anyone who pays for any form of private treatment - even drugs unavailable on the NHS - can be barred from the normal package of NHS care. |
| The issue has come to a head in recent months as a number of cancer patients have been banned from receiving NHS care after topping up their treatment. | The issue has come to a head in recent months as a number of cancer patients have been banned from receiving NHS care after topping up their treatment. |
| Doctors and patients groups have opposed the stance taken and now the government has decided to act on the concerns. | Doctors and patients groups have opposed the stance taken and now the government has decided to act on the concerns. |
| Mr Johnson said guidance on the issue had existed for 20 years, but it was not time to get an "up-to-date view". | Mr Johnson said guidance on the issue had existed for 20 years, but it was not time to get an "up-to-date view". |
| "This is a very complex issue so it needs to be reviewed. We want to be fair to everyone... while protecting the principles of the NHS." | "This is a very complex issue so it needs to be reviewed. We want to be fair to everyone... while protecting the principles of the NHS." |
| Tory MP John Baron, who has campaigned on the issue following the death of his Billericay constituent Linda O'Boyle earlier this year, said: "It is a very welcome decision. The ban on co-payments is cruel." | Tory MP John Baron, who has campaigned on the issue following the death of his Billericay constituent Linda O'Boyle earlier this year, said: "It is a very welcome decision. The ban on co-payments is cruel." |
| Inconsistent | |
| Critics have pointed out that the rules have been inconsistently applied and in some areas of treatment, such as dentistry, not used at all. | Critics have pointed out that the rules have been inconsistently applied and in some areas of treatment, such as dentistry, not used at all. |
| Liberal Democrat health spokesman Norman Lamb said: "This announcement is long overdue, but it is a remarkable u-turn given the comments that Alan Johnson was making only a few months ago. | |
| "When a doctor recommends a treatment as having value to a patient, it seems both cruel and perverse to pull the rug from underneath them. | |
| "NHS treatment should be available to all without favour. If a patient chooses to pay for a drug that the NHS won't provide, then it is unjust to deny them treatment which is available to everyone else." | |
| Shadow health secretary Andrew Lansley added it was right to review co-payments, but added: "We should also be looking at why these drugs are available in other countries and not here." |