Graham Stuart MP has accused the Prime Minister of avoiding answering questions on the unfair health funding in the East Riding of Yorkshire.

The Beverley and Holderness MP was called on by the Speaker to ask a question during Wednesday’s Prime Minister’s Questions in the House of Commons.

 Graham asked the PM: “Health funding is skewed to [...]]]>

Graham Stuart MP has accused the Prime Minister of avoiding answering questions on the unfair health funding in the East Riding of Yorkshire.

The Beverley and Holderness MP was called on by the Speaker to ask a question during Wednesday’s Prime Minister’s Questions in the House of Commons.

 Graham asked the PM: “Health funding is skewed to younger, urban Labour voting areas at the expense of older, rural constituencies such as mine so that Hull receives £1,800 per head and the East Riding just £1,200. The PM knows that age rather than deprivation is the key driver of health need so why does he put Labour’s electoral interests ahead of the needs of the sick?”

But after Gordon Brown appeared simply to list a number of health projects happening across the whole of the Yorkshire and Humber region, Graham said: “The PM avoided answering my question about unfair funding for healthcare in the East Riding. Instead he rattled out selected statistics for the whole of Yorkshire.

“It is clear that it is not a change in the voting system that we need, but a change of Government so the NHS is run for the benefit of the sick and not as an electoral aid for the Labour Party.”

Graham Stuart, MP for Beverley and Holderness, said he had been told some people who lived for part of the year in temporary accommodation or caravans were abusing [...]]]> A loophole in the medical system is being investigated amid fears temporary residents in the East Riding can register at more than one doctor’s practice at a time.

Graham Stuart, MP for Beverley and Holderness, said he had been told some people who lived for part of the year in temporary accommodation or caravans were abusing the system and could even be getting several prescriptions filled at different practices.

He said: “While I am sure the vast majority of people would not attempt to do anything illegal, there is the possibility that valuable prescription drugs paid for by the NHS are ending up on the black market.

Currently a person is able to register as a temporary resident (TR) if they are temporarily living away from their normal place of residence for more than 24 hours but not more than three months. 

The person should not seek to be registered as a TR with more than one doctor.  A doctor, when deciding whether to accept a patient as a TR, should also satisfy himself the patient is not being provided with essential services anywhere else in the locality. 

When registered as a TR a patient may be prescribed medicines deemed necessary by the GP in relation to the patient’s medical condition. 

Graham said: “Recently a constituent raised this alarming issue with me and I immediately contacted the PCT and the police.

“The police have told me they are keeping an eye on the situation and I am glad to see the PCT is taking action to monitor TRs.”

A statement from the PCT, in response to Graham’s concerns, said: “If NHS East Riding of Yorkshire (NHS ERY) becomes aware a patient is attempting to register inappropriately as a TR with a number of practices for the purpose of obtaining prescription drugs to sell ‘on the street’ this would be reported to the local counter fraud team and to the police.

“NHS ERY is aware, from recent internal audit work that the level of control over TRs registering with more than one practice has reduced.  This follows changes to the payment arrangements for TR at GP practices which was introduced in the ‘new’ GP contract in 2004 and also no longer requires NHS ERY to maintain a central record of TR claims.”

And the statement added: “The audit work also highlighted the level of checks carried out by practices to satisfy them patients are not receiving services as a TR from more than one practice varied. In an effort to improve controls in this area, NHS ERY is developing patch wide guidance and processes for the registration of TRs. This will include recommendations for the verification of patients based on the good practice identified at some practices.  It is intended that the patch wide guidance will be issued to practices during the early part of the New Year.”

Residents are hit twice as the Primary Care Trust receives around £85 less per person than the national average because it falls foul of [...]]]> Every man woman and child in Beverley and Holderness has less spent on their health than nearly anywhere in the rest of the country, according to evidence revealed by Graham Stuart MP.

Residents are hit twice as the Primary Care Trust receives around £85 less per person than the national average because it falls foul of a funding formula and an historic process which sees more cash going to other areas.

In fact only two PCTs in the England have a lower per person health spend.

Now Graham has vowed to act to help the PCT close the funding gap.

 Graham said: “While the PCT here must be commended for doing such a good job with so little, it is simply not right that the residents of Beverley and Holderness have less available for their health than virtually anyone else in the country.”

 And he added: “This formula appears to have been developed to favour certain key areas in the country which simply do not face the same burden of need as the East Riding.”

 Health funding is calculated using a complex formula. The formula takes account of the population and then adjusts it for things like the overall age, unavoidable cost difference and additional needs which an area may have.

 The total population number for the PCT is weighted using this formula to arrive at a figure known as the ‘unified weighted population’.

 As a result, East Riding PCT, with a population of 336,700 has a ‘unified weighted population for the purposes of the allocation of 300,199 for the year 2009/10.

 In neighbouring Hull the formula means the population of 250,000 (according to the PCT annual report) becomes a ‘unified weighted population of 316,634.

 Graham added: “What all this means is that across the whole of Beverley and Holderness the amount of money made available to the PCT for each person’s health care is just £1,235.26 a year.

 “In the modern world of high-tech health care that is not a lot of money.”

 And he added: “I am taking the matter up in the House of Commons and will be fighting to make sure the residents of Beverley and Holderness are not treated like second class citizens when it comes to something as vital as health care.”

 The best source for per capita funding is the Health Select Committee public expenditure report. Based on the 2008/09 financial statements for Hull PCT and East Riding of Yorkshire PCT and the Department of Health PCT Allocations Expositions Book.

 The first stage in determining each PCT’s allocation is the calculation through the unified weighted population. This takes an estimate of the PCT’s population (based on Office for National Statistics 2006 projections), and adjusts it for factors such as age, additional need and unavoidable cost differences. The population figure is then further “normalised” and weighted with the objective of reducing avoidable health inequalities.

 In 2008/09, East Riding PCT received net parliamentary funding per person (actual population) of £1235.26 (£415,912,000/336,700). Hull PCT received net parliamentary funding of £1822.89 (£455,722,000/250,000).

 Even under the allocation system, East Riding PCT has one of the worst deals in England, although so does Hull.

 Only two PCTs, Bassetlaw in Nottinghamshire and Barnsley, are more under-funded, percentage-wise, than their target under the allocation formula.

 Were East Riding PCT to get its “fair” share according to the formula, it would need to be allocated a further £28.4 million in 2009/10 – £84 per actual person.

 By contrast, many London PCTs, such as Richmond and Twickenham, Westminster, and Kensington and Chelsea are substantially over-funded according to the allocation formula.