Elderly people are being denied life-saving operations because of age discrimination within the [b]UK’s National Health Service (NHS)[/b], the Royal [b]College of Surgeons[/b] and charity [b]Age UK[/b] warn in [s]The Daily Telegraph[/s]. New data reveal for the first time that across large areas of the country, almost no patients above the age of 75 are receiving surgery for breast cancer or routine operations such as gall bladder removal and knee replacements. Charities said it was ‘alarming and inexcusable’ that pensioners could be left to die prematurely because of a lack of surgery while others were left immobile and in pain. Jeremy Hunt, the Health Secretary, said such discrimination was ‘unacceptable and illegal’ while health officials pledged to tackle variations in care.
[link url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/10942295/NHS-defies-the-law-to-deny-pensioners-vital-operations-warns-Royal-College-of-Surgeons.html]Full report in The Daily Telegraph[/link]
[link url=http://www.ageuk.org.uk/Documents/EN-GB/For-professionals/Health-and-wellbeing/access_all_ages_final_web.pdf?dtrk=true]RCS/Age UK survey[/link]