85-year-old war veteran Jack Strange has spent his savings on medication that is available on the NHS in Scotland...
From the Daily Mail...
Mr Strange, from North Walsham, Norfolk, has age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a condition which leads to the loss of central vision and, if left untreated, can lead to total blindness.
He has spent the money in the past year on the drug Avastin, which is available privately to those who can afford it, as are two other treatments for blindness, Lucentis and Macugen.
In England, the drugs watchdog the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence has not yet given the go-ahead for either Lucentis or Macugen, both of which could have helped Mr Strange. However Macugen is already available in Scotland.
It is one of several examples of the postcode lottery in services, with a number of drugs available in Scotland but not south of the border.
More on health apartheid - http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/health/healthmain.html?in_article_id=448028&in_page_id=1774
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