A small victory for common sense and decency
Saturday, December 13, 2014 at 16:35 An NHS hospital in Devon this week reversed its plan to restrict routine operations for smokers and those who are obese.
The decision, reported two days ago, was made following widespread condemnation of the policy which was originally announced in October and for some reason made headlines again ten days ago.
Credit where credit's due, the most prominent opponent of the policy was deputy prime minister Nick Clegg who described the policy as "unacceptable" and said he disagreed with "rationing in that way".
Other politicians who spoke out included Eric Pickles, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, and Labour's Ben Bradshaw.
When the story broke (again) on December 3 I was invited to appear on Spotlight, the BBC's local evening news programme for the South West.
It was very short notice and I couldn't get to the studio in time but we issued this response:
"The NHS was built on the idea that it doesn't discriminate against people on the grounds of race, creed, colour or lifestyle.
"Not only does this discriminate against people because of their lifestyle, it discriminates against patients according to where they live. Local people will be at a huge disadvantage compared to patients in other regions.
"Smokers are entitled to treatment. They pay £12 billion a year in tobacco taxation alone. This is far more than it costs the NHS to treat smoking-related diseases.
"We would encourage smokers to take their doctor's advice about smoking in advance of an operation but if they choose not to that's a matter for them. Doctors are there to advise, not dictate how people live their lives."
I later caught the programme on iPlayer. We weren't quoted but the presenter gave the NHS representative a serious grilling so we had no complaints.
Thankfully others – including the deputy PM – shared our concerns and the policy has now been dropped.
A small victory, perhaps, but a welcome one nonetheless.
Deputy PM Nick Clegg criticises NHS Devon plan to restrict treatment for smokers and morbidly obese http://t.co/cgvXYdtJat @BBCSpotlight
— Forest (@Forest_Smoking) December 4, 2014
Reader Comments (2)
It's a shame that these politicians fail to see that extremist policies on smoking - like a full public ban with no choice for legitimate consumers - lead to more extremist policies like this one. The anti-smokers call it "the next logical step."
What's the bet that few will stand up for a homeowner's right to set their own policies on using legal products like tobacco in their own home when the antis push at that one after the extremist car ban comes into force - another assault on private property and individual responsibility.
NHS exclusion for smokers has gone away for now but it will rear it's ugly ahead again in future as more extremist lifestyle legislation is decided by public health fascists pushing gullible politicians who act only when it's already too late.
My experience has been that as a private patient the issue of 'lifestyle' has never been raised with me. It certainly was when I was negotiating an NHS operation. Could have been a one-off? I hope so, for other people's sake.