NHS: rationing

I have been lurking for a little while now and I was looking at NHS as a good reason for moving too the UK but i don't know.

"NHS rationing is 'necessary evil', say doctors

The British Medical Association conference heard that rationing was inevitable and a "necessary evil" in today's health service.

Scottish doctors also warned that targets which did not improve patients' care were being given preference to funding treatments which would make a difference.

It comes after growing discontent over decisions made by NHS rationing bodies in the UK, including the Scottish Medicines Consortium.

Patients have voiced anger that new, but expensive, treatments are denied them on the NHS.

In some cases they are available in Scotland, while patients in England go without.

Alex Smallwood, from the BMA's junior doctors' committee, told the meeting in Torquay it needed to be accepted that rationing must take place in the NHS, but this had to be done much more openly.

"It is no longer possible to provide all the latest to absolutely everybody without notable detriment to others," he said.

"Rationing is reduction in choice. Rationing has become a necessary evil. We need to formalise rationing to prevent an unregulated, widening, postcode-lottery of care. Government no longer has a choice."

Dr Smallwood said that a list of acceptable treatments could be drawn up after debate and public consultation.

But this might include a restriction on treating things like hernias and varicose veins - conditions with which people could live."

Health care rationing is a fact of life, no matter where you are. US insurance companies employ people to ration care since as well, both in the profit and non-profit sector. It is simply not feasible to offer every person, every possible form of treatment.

And welcome to UKY.

Hi there,

I'd say that you need many more postive reasons for moving here in additiion to the NHS benefits. As a sole reason for moving here, I don't think it's viable enough on it's own.

If this is your current only reason, then I'd suggest looking at other countries which currently have a better or higher quality of healthcare ranking than the UK to move to. France is well known to have a better quality healthcare system as well as Canada, Australia etc.

Although still well regarded, the UK's NHS has lost it's world wide prestigiousness that it enjoyed in it's heydey in the 50's and 60's.

Like Courtney says, every healthcare system in the world will excercise some sort of rationing, and since I have family members and freinds in the NHS working as Doctors and in managerial roles, there is much more to the NHS than initially meets the eye.

Look for extra positives to you wanting to move here (or any other country) to help make up yer mind!

Cheers! DtM! West London & Slough UK!

I'm an ITU nurse.  I worked in the states before I moved here.  In the US, they have case managers that read over charts and then call the involved insurance companies to get approval for operations/tests/procedures before they are done.  Insurance companies regularly refuse to cover some of these, making the patient responsible for paying for them if they go ahead.  That sounds like rationing to me.  It happens everywhere.  If you have enough money to pay for it yourself, there is no limit.

It does happen everywhere.  My mum and dad are on Medicare and believe me, things are rationed, particularly drugs. 

It's impossible to cover everything for everyone.

thanks for all the responses! Yea, it is not my only reason for wanting to move. There are plenty of other things that I am looking forward to. I just wanted to ask about the NHS (and a few other things later) because it seems like there is a mixed bag of responses.

thanks for all the responses! Yea, it is not my only reason for wanting to move. There are plenty of other things that I am looking forward to. I just wanted to ask about the NHS (and a few other things later) because it seems like there is a mixed bag of responses.

I guess it all depends on if you've got good insurance through your current job now or not, or if you can find a job that includes insurance. My insurance in the U.S. was *massively* better than anything the NHS can offer. But if you've got no insurance at all now, then the NHS would probably look attractive. But be aware that if you need to see specialists or need a non-emergency surgery, you could wait years for the treatment, if you get put on a list at all. I have a British friend who had a problem that required surgery on his anus, and he had to wait a year for surgery. It wasn't life-threatening, but I think he had a *very* uncomfortable year! I've heard of others who need knee-replacement that wait for years -- or if they're overweight, are denied the surgery altogether. The NHS won't answer all of your problems, but to my understanding it will give good basic care (minor things that you basically would go in to the GP for, for a pill or cream or whatever) and good emergency care. With everything in between, it's sort of the luck of the draw.

I think that a person's experience of the NHS is going to depend on what they will need to use it for. For example, I have had a very positive experience of the NHS, but then I have never had to stay in hospital overnight, I have never had surgery and the only thing I usually need to see the doctor for is a repeat prescription of the pill.

The only time I have been to the hospital as a patient was when I broke my leg at age 12. We went to the emergency room, it was X-rayed and put in a cast and I went home - it was all sorted within 2 hours.

However, my brother has had surgery several times and if he didn't have special insurance for athletes, the NHS wait would have been months at a time. He's a national gymnast (he was the non-travelling reserve for the Melbourne Commonwealth Games last year) and the BAGA provides private insurance so he gets priority for sports injuries. In the last year, he's had minor keyhole surgery on each shoulder and one major operation on his right shoulder - had he not been able to get it fixed so quickly, he may have suffered irrepairable damage to his shoulders for the rest of his life (he has a tendency to overdo his training, especially on the rings, which is why the shoulders got so bad).

I was looking at NHS as a good reason for moving too the UK but i don't know.

if milking the NHS is one of your main reasons for moving here, then please dont come.

if milking the NHS is one of your main reasons for moving here, then please dont come.

I have excellent insurance through my job right now. I just think its deplorable the way we treat people who don't have that insurance in this country. I think its horrible that if I really do need my insurance my insurance company is going to come after me and try to not pay any way possible. Universal health care makes any country more attractive to me anyway. I really do think a society can be judged by how it handles its poor or sick.

I have excellent insurance through my job right now. I just think its deplorable the way we treat people who don't have that insurance in this country. I think its horrible that if I really do need my insurance my insurance company is going to come after me and try to not pay any way possible. Universal health care makes any country more attractive to me anyway. I really do think a society can be judged by how it handles its poor or sick.

It is, but at the same time, when you have a socialised system of healthcare, you can expect things like rationing and waiting times, etc.

It's very different from how care is handled in the US.

And I'm with Q-G on this, it's really not a very good reason to move to the UK, no matter how bad you think the insurance system is in the US, particularly if you've got a pre-existing condition.

if milking the NHS is one of your main reasons for moving here, then please dont come.

I don't think the OP was looking to "milk the system". Considering the US system and its benefits and faults I think that someone from the states thinks "wow, universal healthcare" when they think of the UK....that sounds great (and it was great when it started after WW2 through the 80's/mid 90's but modern day, especially with lack of GP choice, waiting lists, post code lottery for diseases, trusts (hospitals) closing every few months that once supported a community, etc it is a bit daunting). Scotland may be different.

I always had great coverage in the states but I thought the same as the OP. Its not until you are here that you realize its not perfect.

Just like in the US...rationing does happen. I really believe that all began with the HMO's in the 80's and has become worse/scary over the years (big business/profit line).

Bottom line, neither the US or the UK system is perfect.  That said, I do like the freedom of choice if you do have insurance when it comes to GP's and specialists in the states.

I don't think the OP was looking to "milk the system".

perhaps it's just because i've (thankfully) had good health all of my life (touch wood), but i just cant imagine choosing the place/country where you are going to live, based on the health care system there, unless i had a motive for doing so.

perhaps it's just because i've (thankfully) had good health all of my life (touch wood), but i just cant imagine choosing the place/country where you are going to live, based on the health care system there, unless i had a motive for doing so.

It would be an issue if you had a health problem that couldn't be treated in that country. For example, suppose you were an insulin-dependent diabetic and insulin wasn't available. Or imagine being very nearsighted in a country where you couldn't get glasses - Personally, I wouldn't be able to leave the house.

This obviously applies to neither the US nor the UK.

perhaps it's just because i've (thankfully) had good health all of my life (touch wood), but i just cant imagine choosing the place/country where you are going to live, based on the health care system there, unless i had a motive for doing so.

I work with quite a few people who can't retire, not because they don't have the money for daily expenses, but because they can't afford to lose the health insurance. That is the main 'motive' behind considering the health care of a country I might be moving to. I am young and healthy but those things don't last forever. Not to mention I have a bit of a social conscious.

Just doing a bit of research on these things I know now that I should probably have my wife knees worked on (if they need it) over here before/if I move.