A number of healthcare services – including IVF fertility treatment – have been slashed by local NHS groups in a cost-cutting exercise designed to alleviate growing financial pressure.

A joint committee of representatives from Herts Valleys Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and East and North Hertfordshire CCG announced the cuts last week.  

The decision to withdraw funding for infertility-battling IVF treatment, other than in “exceptional circumstances”, was the most contentious, with only around a quarter of consulted people supporting the move.

However Herts Valleys CCG said the “vast majority” of proposals received considerable public support, including smokers and obese people being required to improve their health more significantly before being referred for non‐urgent surgery, unless waiting for surgery would be more harmful to them.

The cuts, made at a three-hour public meeting on Thursday (October 12), follow a 10-week public consultation “designed to make best use of the money and resources available to the local NHS”.

Dr Nicolas Small, chairman of Herts Valleys CCG, said: “None of these decisions have been taken lightly but people understand that the NHS faces major challenges and must adapt to meet them.

“Proposals on IVF services in particular generated strong feelings and it was an especially difficult decision. We have listened to the views of local people and I am pleased that we decided to review today’s decision in 12 months’ time in the context of our future financial position.

“Although we are asking people to take more responsibility for some aspects of their healthcare where possible, we won’t be withdrawing any support from people who are not able to do this.

“GPs will still make decisions based on the individual needs of their patients, and will be able to refer individual cases to a specialist decision-making panel if their patient faces exceptional clinical circumstances.”

As part of the cuts, female sterilisation will only be funded in exceptional circumstances to be assessed on a case‐by‐case basis.

Gluten-free food will no longer be made available on prescription, except for patients with learning disabilities or where there are welfare concerns, and people wanting a prescription for medicines, products and food items that are available over the counter to treat\ short-term conditions will also need to purchase them directly, except in exceptional circumstances.

A proposal to stop funding for vasectomies was rejected on the basis that “this would not be cost-effective when the long-term cost of contraceptive services is taken into account”.

The changes will be implemented over the coming weeks and months.