News / Bristol
Proposal to lower IVF eligibility age in Bristol
Lowering the cut-off age for women to receive fertility treatment and restrictions to breast cancer reconstructive surgery are among proposed changes to the NHS in Bristol.
Patients will also have to apply for special approval for any non-health related cosmetic work, homeopathy will be scrapped and access to treatment for obstructive sleep apnoea limited under the cost-cutting plans.
NHS bosses warn that health spending in Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire has exceeded the £1.15 billion budget in recent years and the deficit is growing.
is needed now More than ever
They say a raft of proposed measures could lead to a saving of £66m, leaving a regional deficit of £25m for 2017-18 and are inviting members of the public to have their say on the changes.
Currently, women up to the age of 40 can have NHS-funded fertility treatment providing they fulfil the eligibility criteria, but the Bristol Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) plans to make the cut-off 35, after which the likelihood of successful IVF decreases.
Couples in which either partner already has a child will no longer be able to access fertility assessments or treatments through the health service.
The NHS currently funds fertility treatment for around 400 couples throughout the region at a cost of £1.9m a year, the CCG expects to half this number if the plans go ahead.
Health bosses say they are fully committed to funding reconstructive surgery for women affected by breast cancer, but this will no longer stretch to surgery on the unaffected breast to correct asymmetry.
The CCG argues this will cut down the time patients have to wait for diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer.
A crackdown on the £10m a year spent by the NHS on medicines that can be bought over the counter is also planned across the region in a bid to plug the deficit and a more “consistent approach to testing for and treating chronic liver disease” is planned.
The CCG says: “This is an ongoing process and proposals and plans will develop as we continue this vital transformation. We will continue to publish our proposals and review feedback and comments from patients and the public
For further information and to give feedback, visit the Get Involved pages of the CCG website.
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