The NHS

I don't have any news to tell you today (other than I start my first injection tomorrow morning) so I want to follow up on the BBC story about the IVF postcode lottery.

When I set off to come here I bought several trashy magazines to read on the plane. I didn't get to read them all on the plane but have been reading them while I am here.

This week I was on the BBC talking baout how haard it is for couples in the UK to get their 1 free go of IVF via the NHS, and how unfair their system is for who gets it and who doesn't (when everyone should get it!).

What annoyed me from these magazines were the 2 stories I read about people's lives. The first one was about a girl called Laura who was on Big Brother 8, known as Whangers for her large boobs. It seems she has had a breast reduction, paid for by the NHS.

Then there was the next story about the man who thought he was really a woman, so he tied eleastic bands around his testicles and cut them off, then went to the hospital for help. He is now waiting to get the rest of his sex change on the NHS.

My PCT they can't afford to pay for IVF because they say it would take money away from cancer treatment etc, but I'd like to know how much money my PCT spends on the following:

Sex Change Operations
Breast enlargements and reductions
Smokers trying to quit
Fat people who want to lose weight
Alcoholics who want to quit
Foreigners coming over for free treatment

Because I feel that if these people can get treatment (and I'm not saying that they shouldn't get it) but if they do pay for these things, then they should be paying for me too.

Maybe I'll have to do some research when I get home!