Westminstenders: Summer Season

[RedToothBrush]

No its not the weather making your brain rot and stop thinking.

Thats just Brexit.

I was meaning a 'simple' case of meds currently manufactured in the EU that are wanted by patients in the UK.
Yes the NHS is not a 'regulator' but I was attempting to simplify it to tease out the actual problems. One is transport, the other is the continued 'legality' of supplying meds to UK patients. At the moment if you are taking a prescription med made in Germany say and it comes in a branded box with correct paperwork 'trail' you can be sure you get what you are prescribed. It is the legal regulatory 'system' behind all this that is being put into some doubt.
Factories producing meds in the UK can (presumably) continue to supply to the UK as usual BUT shipping them to the EU or indeed anywhere outside the UK will require the certifications to be reestablished.

Can all medication be stockpiled for six months?

Quite aside from shelf life, you also have to consider the various drugs laws. A friend who was on long term benzodiazepines was only allowed a limited amount at a time, as they get sold to addicts a lot. Even at her lower prescribed amount, she had a couple of visits from the police.

I already suggested one result of this atmosphere - cunty scumbags preying on peoples fear and helplessness and flogging fake medicines. The handmaiden to that will be cunts abusing prescriptions and stealing medicines to flog them on.

Imagine having to go to your local friendly drug dealer. Not for skunk, nor skag, nor charlie, nor crack, but just a couple of days medicine for seizures, or blood pressure.

Some people stand to do very well.

One is a logistics problem which 'emergency' measures' can restrict the impact of serious customs holdups, and the other that technically if the certifications become invalid there is the possibility that fraudulent goods may get through.

There's a Fake Medicines Directive

psnc.org.uk/contract-it/pharmacy-regulation/falsified-medicines-directive/

EU initiative, of course.

Hi DGR
That regulation comes in in February, just in time for the UK to leave!
With the whole of the Brexit fiasco it is becoming apparent how complicated 'life' really is and the ridiculous 'leaver' plan of pulling up the drawbridge and having what will be 'isolationist' UK.
For so many reasons the EU must not 'give in' to the UK 'demands' to weaken the four main pillars of the EU. It is necessary to stand back and take a much wider view of the world to see what is going on and what is necessary to maintain a decent standard of living for as many as possible. The UK is committing economic suicide, certainly if it presses for a 'no deal' exit. Countries that did not have mineral wealth, for example Holland, knew that to develop past subsistence farming they had to trade, so they speak various languages and make every effort to trade and rather than 'heavy' industry, buy in materials and make high value goods. The UK had mineral wealth and exploited it at the time. Lack of investment and depletion of higher yield raw materials have largely killed off that avenue of 'regrowth'.

A few notes about medicines ...

Already some are unavailable. Simple economics has meant companies - some the sole suppliers to the UK - simply stopped making them.

Case study is "Teoptic" which was manufactured by Thea Pharmaceuticals up in the North East. I know because I've been there, after the MHRA brushed me (and my MP) off. Takeaway message there is if your plan involves the MHRA, you're right royally fucked before you leave the house.

My MP then harassed www.gov.uk/government/people/lord-oshaughnessy who after a suitably decorous delay replied that there must be somewhere else in the world that makes the stuff, so good luck there. He didn't actually say that. However showing his letter to my GP simply resulted in a phrase you don't like hearing from doctors ...

I literally have no idea what he is talking about ... (checks letter) ... he doesn't have the first clue how the NHS works ...

The bottom line is no Teoptic for over a year now.

Teoptic is one of a medicines used to reduce IntraOcular Pressure, which is linked with preventing glaucoma. A chronic disease which if left untreated usually results in complete blindness. Because it's a gradual process and it starts at the outside (peripheral) vision, if it's undiagnosed and/or untreated, your first experience will be a road accident where you clip a car or pedestrian that you didn't see.

There are a range of such medicines. There needs to be because - as anyone why takes any long or life term medication will know (and if they don't, they'll find out when one goes off the market) sometimes a medicine can simply stop working. (Or the patient develops an allergy/reaction). So having a choice of medicines is a Good Thing. Currently I've been switched to another medicine. It's too soon to know if it is - or isn't working. Glaucoma is measured slowly. If it is working, great - as long as it can be sourced and there's no adverse reaction. If not ... tough titties. It and Teoptic are the two medicines my consultant would clinically advise.

So given the above, which has all taken over 12 months to happen, I really suggest people revise their expectations downwards over how medicines will fare in a no/shit deal scenario that now has 6 months to play out. And if that revision requires some deep digging to go lower than you thought, I'll meet you there with a , or as you prefer, along with . We can weep together for what has become of the world we knew.

In a world where we all seek to make sense of what happens, maybe losing my sight early is God sparing me seeing something worse ?

Apologies for rambling. But I hope I've helped some people calibrate their expectations. Because there's far too much "oh that won't" happen and "that can't happen" in the air at the moment.

It can.
It is.
It will.

Anyway, I'm back off to live up to my username. Lurk. And be a Husband.

Brexit slowly sliding down the BBC page ... probably hit the fold before midday.

Seems todays the day to have some Scots news, for a change. Seems news outlets can find Scotland for a story when it's not about Brexit or Independence.

Techies pick up the VAT fudge

www.theregister.co.uk/2018/08/24/uk_gov_publishes_nodeal_papers/

If the UK were to get a one month extension (or up up a maximum of 8 weeks, so as to avoid returning UKIP MEPs in the EU Parliamentary elections, surely that also means that the anti-money laundering regulations come into force

That would give the forensic accountants and the very few investigative journalists a month to 8 weeks to expose some of our elite a few miscreants.

Actually, come up think of it, even if the UK manages to avoid "No Deal" and cobble together something at the last minute, don't the transition arrangements mean that the UK has to follow EU Laws until the end of 2020? (Or earlier if pigs fly a trade agreement is concluded)

It's such a clusterfuck that I've lost track of what will or won't apply - just that we're USCWOAP

If we get a one month extension, that will be taken up entirely with fire fighting issues, not progressing negotiations.

They are just going to waive everything through which is EU approved, n'est ce pas?

On the other side, the products manufactured in the UK will have to be imported and batch tested in the EU, like other 3rd countries.

So let's get this straight. We are very happy to unilaterally rely on and derive the benefit from the EU burdensome regulations (that we so wanted rid of).

Ok but are we going to do the same with say Egypt, India, China or particularly the US? Assuming we do get to trade with them will we let all their crap in unregulated?

Won't it be embarrassing if we say... look we rejected you EU as our preferred trading partner- but we trust your stuff.

But you oh great USA are our preferred trading partner but we don't trust your stuff and so you must meet our checks and standards?

We can't have one rule for one and a different rule for the others iyswim.

Incidentally on the subject of regulations I have two Chinese descent friends- both married to Brits/EU partners and both spending the summer with relatives in China. They were telling me that they take organic food as gifts because there are so many incidents of illness from untrustworthy products entering the food chain that their relatives want food from here/EU as they trust it more.

1tis thank you. GP doesn't do DP's care it's handled by a consultant. It's a very long story!

The NHS has been crumbling, the care in emergency situations is IME good but stablising patients before an emergency or doing preventive care has been an uphill battle for us. In part I think that's due to the fact rescue meds are pennies to buy in comparison. Our GP forgets the cost involved in going to a&e but as it doesn't come out of they're budget they dont care.

Yesterday I contacted MP again and we're seeing consultant in a few months time.

I need my big girl pants and a brandy for the months ahead I think.

lurking here's to weeping together

Mrsr8 yup, some parts of the country suffer more medicine shortages then others. Only found that out cos we were told how lucky we were to get one DP's med in stock.

Did anyone see Newsnight yesterday? The govt had nobody from the cabinet available and neither did the Labour Party so it was Sarah Wollaston and JRM. I am almost as angry at Labour as I am with the ultra Brexiteers.
Good to see you LH and hope Mrs Lurking is okz

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We can't have one rule for one and a different rule for the others iyswim.

In fact, isn't that illegal under WTO? Or is that just for actual tariffs rather than regulations?

How eurotunnel will cope after brexit is anybody’s guess

First step: sueball for the UK government.

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Sympathy & best wishes, LH - I am also visually handicapped and will need ever more meds.

I have had macular degeneration for some years, due to being born with crappy eyes
and I also now have glaucoma and high pressure in both eyes (you are right: one doesn't notice it, only found during a checkup)

My consolation is, being in Germany at least I have access to the medicines that give me the best chance of retaining sight as long as possinble

hazard First, your DP is so lucky to have you; your respect & love for him shines through
You have given us a really good picture of the fine human being he is

What happens after no deal:

Any country is allowed under WTO to apply waivers immediately to prevent injury or loss of life to its residents.
So that would apply to essential supplies only, mainly food & medicines
but not normal commercial trade for manufacturing etc

If there are shortages of medications due to no-deal,
then these can be flown in by the RAF, who are not affected by civil aviation rules or certifications

If the RAF capacity is fully taken up with ferrying other supplies around the UK,
or the govt have so disorganised everything that the RAF don't have sufficient fuel or spare parts,

then the EU would organise med transport via member air forces

• in total, they have a huge number of transport planes available They would most certainly organise emergency flights very quickly on request from the UK govt to save British residents, regardless of how much the UK govt had pissed them off.

... The only real danger of med shortages happening:
the UK govt being so incompetent / proud / plain eveil
that they won't know what is needed urgently or they won't want to ask for help

Mother

We came back on the ferry on Sunday evening. As with you, there were long queues in Calais. One apparent problem is that the French and UK passport checking booths are too close together, with space for just half a dozen cars between them. If the French officials are passing people through more quickly than the UK lot (as appeared to be the case), this causes a back-up right up the queue, as the French staff can't go any faster than the Brits.

Did you also notice the miles of coned-off 50 mph stretches along both sides of the M20? This is apparently for strengthening of the hard shoulders, presumably preparatory to having lorries parked on them for days, although there wasn't much sign of progress. They've got miles of this to do, practically up to Maidstone, so let's hope it's a mild winter and they can step up the construction rate.

Using the Channel ports is going to be so enjoyable in a few months' time. I hope the lorry drivers bring plenty of reading material (and presumably lots of empty bottles for eventual disposal among the hedgerows of Kent ).

We came back on the ferry on Sunday evening.

Us too, to Portsmouth. No queues at the French end but about 30 minutes at Portsmouth when we have never really had to queue before. Passports had already been checked at the French end.

As predicted, Brexit off the BBC front page.

Maybe the UK is tighhtening up its borders already.

Does illustrate that traffic travels through an international border at the speed of the slower side"s checks

No good the UK saying they won't change things after Brexit,
if WTO rules & MFN terms of existing EU trade deals require the EU to treat the UK as a 3rd country.