Shropshire Star

MP 'deeply disappointed' by Powys Teaching Health Board’s changes to make patients wait longer for hospital treatment

I remain deeply disappointed by Powys Teaching Health Board’s recent decision to proceed with changes that will see local patients waiting longer for hospital treatment

Published

Under these new arrangements, people in Powys who are referred to hospitals across the border in Shropshire and Herefordshire, such as Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, will now be subject to artificially lengthened, Welsh NHS waiting times, even though those hospitals operate under the faster targets set by the English NHS. 

This decision is a serious blow for patients in our area. In a rural county like Powys, many of us rely on cross-border care simply because there is no major hospital within the county itself. To deliberately slow down access to treatment, instead of working to reduce waiting times, defies logic and perpetuates inequality between us and our neighbours in England. 

It is hard to overstate how frustrating this is for us Powys residents; people here pay the same taxes as anyone else. We already travel further to access healthcare than most, and now we are being told we must also wait longer, due to a purely political decision. That is simply not acceptable. 

The financial pressures facing the Health Board are undeniable, with a projected deficit of 38.4 million pounds next year. However, it is clear that these challenges are the result of decades of underfunding by the Welsh Labour Government. Instead of addressing the root causes of the crisis, the Health Board has opted to pass the burden onto patients, an approach that is both short-sighted and damaging to public health. 

This issue goes far beyond funding. It is about dignity, fairness, and the basic right of people in Powys to access timely medical care, regardless of their postcode. 

I have already written to both the Health Board and the Welsh Government, and I will be raising this matter in Parliament at the earliest opportunity. I will continue to press for a reversal of this decision, and I remain committed to fighting for the high-quality healthcare for the people of Powys. 

If I can be of assistance at any time, please contact me at david.chadwick.mp@parliament.uk or on 01792 316380.  

David Chadwick, Brecon, Radnor and Cwm Tawe MP