We need to start charging for NHS services

[Fragmentedbrain]

£15 for the GP
£20 for A&E
NHS routes to paid-for fast track treatment
Options to pay for nicer rooms

We need to stop putting working people on disability benefits for want of a functioning health service it's barbaric

This A&E proposal btw is only 20% of the cost in Ireland (children get an exemption)

How does that work if you’re on min wage with health conditions that mean you’re likely at the GP twice a month? Because I couldn’t afford that

If I was charged I simply couldn't afford to go. I'm a carer which I know a lot of people look down on but I just couldn't afford it on carers wages.

Is this to stop time wasters?

Unpopular, but I think abuse of the NHS should be charged.

Missed appointments should have a fine. Misuse of A&E should have a fine.

Yes to pay for nicer rooms, nicer food etc. It could subsidise the other areas.

I am on the fence about having to pay for GP appointments. In principle maybe, but chronic conditions that require repeat visits should only pay once. Shouldn't be penalised for having a condition.

I would go even further and say the whole NHS needs to be privatised. It’s no longer sustainable in its current state.

Also, A and E costs...what if someone doesn't have the means to pay at that time? What about children? What about elderly in care homes? I pay enough each month for their things such as toothpaste and shower gel etc because their families don't care, I can't afford to pay for their nhs treatment too. I can only think you're coming at this from a place of privilege.

The same way it works in other countries. There are exemptions and ways of reclaiming. France, Germany, Portugal, Ireland etc. Nobody is dropping dead, outcomes are much better.

Ultimately if we want the NHS to continue people are going to have to contribute to their care.

I agree OP. I used to live in Ireland. A system more like the Irish one would be a better idea. People who can't pay for genuine reasons can get an exemption medical card and Under 5s get a GP visit card for free doctor's visits, too. A+E cost €100 in our city if you weren't referred by a GP (free if referred) and if you couldn't pay, you would sort a payment plan. With the resources of the NHS behind a system like this, I think it would work even better than it does in Ireland.

I've been saying the same for years

a lot of people who need the NHS simply wouldn't be getting seen as they couldn't afford it. how is that helpful in the long run?

I also think it would pave the way for 24 hour out of hours GP services like they have in Ireland, which massively takes the pressure off A+E outside GP office hours.

In reality i would see people demanding extra time "because they pay for it"

🤔yes that will help 🙄

Everyone is too used to freebies in this country. That's why there's people coming here from all over the world to take advantage of everything they can get for free. It's a joke and no longer works.

I agree - though anyone on UC or benefits like pension credit should be exempt.

I think £10 for a GP appointment if you’re over 18 and a fine if you don’t bother turning up would stop time wasters booking in the first place.

If you end up in A&E as a result of too much alcohol (injury or needing stomach pumped) you should have to pay the cost of your treatment - or £100 or whatever. Same goes for drug related injuries.

Children and those on benefits can carry on as usual.

Everyone? Children, those on benefits, the elderly? Remember the WFA outcry!!
Just leaving the poor sods in the squeezed middle yet again.
Most of my clinic non attenders are over 65.

With what staff? We are running on the bare bones Mon-Fri.

I wish people would recognise that this type of system works well in other countries and stop burying their head in the sand - we either reform the NHS or it collapses and we end up with a US-style for-profit system that only benefits the rich. Australia have a system similar to what you describe OP, and my experience of it was very positive. They also encourage people to have private healthcare using tax incentives, and often the private system cross-subsidises the public system e.g. a private patient gives birth in the same delivery suite as the non-private patient (and therefore helps contribute to the cost of running it) but is then moved to a private room so gets that ‘perk’ to justify the fees they’ve paid.

Don't worry op, it's going that way already, won't be long.

I am happy for charging if my taxes are reduced. I cannot afford anything even slightly luxurious, so I am not prepared to pay more if taxes remain the same.

I don't agreeing with paying for nhs services, it should stay free at the point of delivery. However I think if you have a GP or hospital appointment you should pay a "deposit" say £10-15, refunded if you attend or cancel in advance. That might stop some no shows.

Well then it's not the NHS is it.

It's private healthcare - the whole ethos of the NHS is that it is free at the point of use. That's why it was set up in the first place.

People can choose to go private if they wish. The options you've outlined are already available - paying for nicer rooms, to fast track - you're talking about private medicine.

Great

I live in Swansea and we have 24/7 GP services - it's called 'out of hours'.