Published 30 June 2009, doi:10.1136/bmj.b2657
Cite this as: BMJ 2009;338:b2657

News

Gordon Brown turns waiting time targets into a patient’s right

Helen Mooney

1 London

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

NHS patients in England who have suspected cancer will have the right to see a specialist within two weeks, Gordon Brown has announced.

Under the government’s new plans, primary care trusts will be required to pay for private consultations for patients if NHS hospitals cannot meet the timescale.

The pledge forms part of the government’s draft legislative programme, "Building Britain’s Future," unveiled on Monday.

The proposals also include giving patients a number of other entitlements in their NHS care. They will have the right to an operation within 18 weeks of first seeing their GP, to a free health checkup at the age of 40, to treatment from an NHS dentist, to die at home if they have a long term medical condition, and to be treated in accident and emergency departments within four hours.

Although patients would not be able to challenge the NHS legally if these rights were . . . [Full text of this article]


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