NHS should charge people

[Brideandpredjudice]

AIBU to think that people should be charged a fee for wasting the time and resources of the NHS and to think this might help with some of the current problems?

I was just reading a thread where someone had purposely done something that they shouldn't have done before their appointment, which meant it couldn't go ahead. Why do people think this is okay?

We can't continue to have a free health service if it's misused like this and perhaps the only way to deter people would be with a fine. No idea if or how this would work in actuality and how they would police genuine mistakes from accidents, but it's so infuriating. They should at least be pushed back to the bottom of the queue.

I recently had to pay for an appointment because the waiting list was over 12 months. I wonder how much shorter it would be without all the missed appointments etc.

If the NHS is going to fine me for missed appointments then I would like some say in the appointment day/time. We are never asked or consulted; just told what suits them and we have to fit round it.

We have it very good here, but thank you for your concern. Yes, we pay private insurance premiums but we are not taxed anywhere near as highly as you folks in the UK. I’ve lived and worked in both and done the sums. Taking the lower taxes into consideration and all of the premiums and OOP maximums, I’m still better off here. No wait lists for anything. No waiting hours for an ambulance. Healthcare that covers everything, including the dentist and optician. So many choices of who I can see for treatment. No waiting for referrals for specialists. More regular and earlier screening for major “killers” such as cancer and heart disease. More focus on wellness and prevention rather than the band-aid approach of the NHS. Nurses that are paid a salary that befits the valuable work they do. Much higher survival rates for cancer. I’ll pay a $25 co-pay for an office visit for all that.

for everyone? Everyone in the USA gets the same standard of treatment - even the homeless or unemployed?

I would charge a flat rate e.g £10, for AE, GP and Consultant appointments.

Most countries do.

People wouldn't miss appointments if they had paid up front for them.

As per usually, exceptions for the low paid etc, just as we have to pay almost £10 for prescriptions.

@BritWifeInUSA I'm glad what you have suits your needs. I shudder when I think of the people in America who desperately need medical attention but can't afford it/insurance won't cover it. Imagine not being able to call an ambulance in a life or death situation.

Completely irrelevant.

NI covers state pension accrual only when looked at retrospectively. Thats 35 years now.

Means absolutely zero for the NHS

All civilised, developed countries make their over 65s pay insurance.

We are going broke in the UK because we don't.

Its as simple as that with an aging population.

The "I paid in all my life" brigade really gets on my nerves in the UK.

You didn't pay anywhere near enough tax.

Time to face reality.

Sounds great. Being disabled is expensive enough already.

I wouldn't need so many appointments if someone would actually listen.

I wish they could charge for misuse of ambulance services.
So the people who call them believing they will be seen sooner in A&E (they won't) or as an alternative to getting a taxi have a deterrent.
But on the whole, I would prefer not to start charging , because once you do then it will be more acceptable to start charging for other services.

On the flip side there are many many people worry about wasting peoples time and not making medical appointments when they really should.

We should be encouraging early intervention and preventative healthcare rather than waiting for the worst case scenario which costs the NHS and individuals so much more.

A friends mother was put down as not attending an appointment when he'd actually taken her.
Also same person had an appointment letter arrive after the appointment.

Just to calm you down a bit, I paid NI and income tax all my working life of 40 + years and am still paying income tax. Am also, like most people , paying VAT, council tax, road fund tax, airport tax, petrol tax, tax on wine and spirits……….. the list goes on. I am paying my way, don’t worry.

They should not charge because:

1. it would take more time and money to administer a system for it and chase money - than they actually get back
2. the people most affected will be the people with most need (eg people who have bad jobs where boss refuses them time off work or mental health issues or elderly, struggling to cope).

As a group (over 65) you are NOT paying your way.

Thats the entire point.

The NHS is being driven to bankruptcy because of that lack of funding.

You want it to improve?

Make the pensioners pay NI! They are the reason for 65% of NHS spending. There is not enough working people paying NI anymore to fund them due to demographics.

This would disproportionately affect people like me, who have issues with executive function and therefore struggle to keep track of appointments, etc.

This is reminding me of the time I was told off by the ultrasound tech at one of my baby scans. She was mad that I was in the bathroom when I was called and asked me (publicly) if I had been to pee. I said I had and then I got berated for it, saying that they may have to make a new appointment as it's harder to see a baby without a full bladder and that it was costing the NHS money. She even went to the effort to point at all the notices around the waiting room (in front of other people) that said about having a full bladder.

The reason I went to pee? She was running almost two hours late. That was two extra hours with a pregnant belly and a very full bladder (as ordered). I was at the stage of almost peeing myself in the waiting room.

I should have wee'd on her ultrasound bed and shoes.

I don’t agree, the NHS needs to stop wasting money, why do they continue to send letters to patients when most people has access to email & mobile phones for appt reminders, the NHS is just very inefficient. It would cost more money to implement charges. NHS was meant to be a cradle to grave service, it isn’t free, it is paid for by NI contributions. I do agree that the NHS should do more to combat health tourism though.

Just to add. We saw baby just fine. She was quite the poser and was very clearly visible.

I suspect charges for seeing GP will happen eventually. It is a bit of a worry though, as some people put off seeing a doctor at the best of times and are less likely to go if they have to pay. Might lead to missed diagnosis of serious conditions

I think the NHS can be overhauled and managed more effectively. Less waste etc.

When I was pregnant I had GD. I had calculated my insulin usage to the date of the ELCS and only needed one more insulin pen. I recall standing in the pharmacy trying to had back 5 extra pans from the pack of 6 before I left, as I simply didn't need them. The pharmacist refused, saying they couldn't split the pack, even if they wanted to. I told them upfront I only needed one, no one listened, no one tried to save that wastage. I had to take them home and then return them for destruction alongside all of the rest of the overstock from the diabetes prescriptions. The system is flawed in so many ways.

No they don’t.

Erm - they paid NI all their working lives, and for much of that time they wouldn't have needed the service that their contributions were paying for. Other people benefited from their contributions over all those years. Now, our NI contributions are paying for the service currently being provided for the benefit of all who need it.

By the time we retire, the next generation's NI contributions will be funding our treatment.

That's how it works.

Two things to consider:

1. People who are severely ill tend to have a lot of appointments going on. It's easy to think "How can you just forget to go to an appointment?" when you're generally healthy but when you've got a couple of appointments per week and you've unexpectedly been hospitalised for a night or two you can be genuinely shocked that oh, whoops today is Tuesday not Monday? Or you have appointments spanning over multiple NHS trusts and turn up at the wrong hospital (I have personally done this). Or you actually do know exactly when and where you're meant to be.. but you can't drive due to illness and your transport lets you down (an increasing issue in these days of high fuel prices as taxis get less reliable). Or you actually got hospitalised last night in Hospital A as an emergency, you're meant to be seeing your consultant in Hospital B tomorrow and whilst Hospital A promised you it was sorted the message didn't get through .
2. A lot of serious illnesses involve brain fog. Tiredness, unclear thinking, and sometimes inability to recall a conversation. And the more appointments you have, the more likely it is that someone has called to give you some of them over the phone because you need to be seen soon which means you don't necessarily have everything in writing to check through if you forget. I've known people travel miles into London for an appointment that wasn't until a week later. In an ideal world we'd all have someone helping us track these things when we're not quite functioning mentally but a lot of people are limping through making mistakes.

People over 65 have already been paying NI all their working lives.
You are very ignorant. Maybe better to make people who don't work pay?

Except they wouldn't charge 'everyone'. Children wouldn't pay, nor those on benefits, nor pensioners (despite ability of many to pay).
The same poor sods in the middle would be the only ones penalised.

Yeah sure knock yerself out. But hey , why not vote for a party in government who will properly fund and invest in the NHS instead of cutting it to the bone for the past 12 years or so ?? That would be nice wouldn't it!?