MEP welcomes plans on Cancer treatment top-ups.
November 4, 2008 12:44 PM
Liz Lynne, the LibDem MEP for the West Midlands, has today applauded the Government's decision to allow Cancer sufferers to pay top-up charges in order to get drugs not automatically available on the NHS.
The new scheme will overturn current rules stating that if someone chooses to pay for treatments that are not usually given by the NHS then they will be unable to get any of their care funded by the state. The rules will instead allow people to pay for the price of the additional drugs while retaining their right to be treated by the National Health Service as normal.
Liz Lynne, who is the Co- Chair of MEPs Against Cancer, said that the decision was a positive step by the Government but also warned that the UK must ensure that the latest drugs are made available to NHS patients. The UK remains one of the worst places in Europe for the provision of new Cancer treatments.
Speaking today Liz said:
"I am very pleased the Government has decided to allow patients to top- up their NHS care with the latest available treatments.
"For far too long Cancer sufferers have had to choose whether to use the National Health Service, and be denied the drugs that may help save their life, or to go it alone and risk financial hardship or even bankruptcy. This was an unacceptable state of affairs and simply had to change.
"However, the UK remains well behind many other European countries in providing Cancer treatments on the National Health Service to those who cannot afford to pay additional fees for better care.
"It is vital that we ensure the poorest people in our society are not now expected to come up with the extra money, but that the Government reforms the acceptance procedures for new treatments so they are available on the NHS as quickly as possible.
Liz added that any reforms should also seek to put an end to the postcode lottery that sees different treatments being made available on the NHS in different areas:
"Unless there is certainty in the system then Cancer patients will not be able to make informed choices about their care. We must stop the postcode lottery, it is simply not right that the quality of the drugs you get is dependant upon where you live. If we are to change the UK's poor performance on Cancer treatment this is a subject that must discussed in the same breath as reforms to other areas of NHS Cancer care.
"Today's decision is an important one, but it is not the end of the game and the government must continue to strive to give Cancer suffers the best treatments possibly available not matter what their address or their financial status."
ENDS
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