Page 84 - BHTA 100 years

It was busy in the Prosthetics Section too as a PR campaign was proposed to lobby MP’s, again about issues surrounding NHS procurement. Chairman of the Section at the time, Stephen Blatchford said: “The Section has two main concerns. The transfer of procurement from NHS PASA to NHS Supply Chain (DHL) and the model they want to impose causes us great concern and affects our ability to run our companies pro tably.”
There was also concern about a postcode lottery situation where patients got very different levels of service depending on where they lived. With the incidence of diabetes on the increase and the likelihood of more prosthetic limbs being used in the future, the Section was concerned about future funding.
The FAME (First Aid Medical Equipment) Section was having a battle of its own over moist cleaning wipes, or antiseptic wipes. Chairman of the Section, Andy Pear reported that the MHRA was suggesting that they should be classi ed as pharmaceuticals, which would have caused a problem for the industry as there was no license in existence.
And, if things weren’t busy enough, Parliamentary Representative, Mark Oaten MP, reported that the ongoing saga of Part lX of the drug tariff relating to stoma and urology/incontinence appliances appeared to be entering its nal stages. The matter had been on agenda’s for years by this time with what Mark described as “consultations, reviews and then consultations on the reviews, seemingly all merging into one.”
Both the DACs (Dispensing Appliance Contractors) Section and the Stoma and Continence Products Sections had been embroiled in three years of debate and discussion about changes to the tariff which would see many customers deprived of a level of service provided by the DACs. Six consultations had produced what Mike Sawers, Chairman of the DACs Section described as ‘an enormous amount of work’. A seventh consultation had been proposed.
Mark Oaten suggested that the Association was “now at the business end”. Once again it was all about saving money and the question was what effect the plans would have on the availability, the range and standard of the products
BHTA 100 years