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Possible Age Discrimination in British Health Services

Wed, 03/15/2000 - 12:00am — Karen Stevenson
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Britain'™s National Health Service (NHS) has come under fire for alleged age discrimination over kidney care policies that sacrifice older patients in favor of saving younger victims of renal diseases. A confidential memorandum, leaked to the London Daily Mail, was signed by 12 senior clinicians at major hospitals in London. It indicates that a shortage of funds is forcing doctors to send kidney patients as young as 50 home to die so that the limited available funds can be channeled into treatment for the young.

This is the latest in a series of accusations that the National Health Service is actively promoting age discrimination in the delivery of health services. Age Concern's report Turning your Back on Us cites examples of ageism in the National Health Service. The report stated that old people are told that treatment is unavailable to them because of their age or are given a low priority. The Age Concern survey found that one in 20 people over the age of 65 in Britain had been refused treatment by the NHS, and that as many as one in 10 people said that they had noticed a difference in treatment since their 50th birthday. Areas of special concern are routine breast screening, cancer and coronary problems.

Britain'™s National Health Service (NHS) has come under fire for alleged age discrimination over kidney care policies that sacrifice older patients in favor of saving younger victims of renal diseases. A confidential memorandum, leaked to the London Daily Mail, was signed by 12 senior clinicians at major hospitals in London. It indicates that a shortage of funds is forcing doctors to send kidney patients as young as 50 home to die so that the limited available funds can be channeled into treatment for the young.

This is the latest in a series of accusations that the National Health Service is actively promoting age discrimination in the delivery of health services. Age Concern's report Turning your Back on Us cites examples of ageism in the National Health Service. The report stated that old people are told that treatment is unavailable to them because of their age or are given a low priority. The Age Concern survey found that one in 20 people over the age of 65 in Britain had been refused treatment by the NHS, and that as many as one in 10 people said that they had noticed a difference in treatment since their 50th birthday. Areas of special concern are routine breast screening, cancer and coronary problems.