[lettie]

Tealeaf is right about the free healthcare being unable to meet demand. The NHS was set up to provide lifesaving emergency care to all in this country and was the envy of the world at one time. Unfortunately due to advances in science and medical research many treatments are now available which are given routinely but are not necessarily life saving, yet they are still free. Money-wise, the NHS is a bottomless pit and new treatments have to be paid for by somebody. It has now come to pass that one shot at IVF is now available on the NHS due to the recent NICE guidelines. This is mega-expensive treatment, not necessarily life saving but some may argue that for people desperate for children of their own it would improve quality of life.
It is high time that the government and the public realised that the NHS cannot be all things to all people and that non-lifesaving treatments should be paid for. It's also high time that people took responsibility for their own health. I cannot even begin to tell you the amount of missed appointments at GP's and hospital clinics by people who just can't be bothered to turn up. Not only could someone else have been seen in their place but it costs millions in wasted man hours, letters sent to the patients and follow up. Don't even get me started on the illegal immigrants free healthcare situation, as we have had some recently who have failed their appeals but have still been treated for free. Where's the fairness in that?