A Scottish patient and her lawyer have commenced legal action regarding a Lothian decision to withdraw NHS funding for homeopathic treatment.

According to The Scotsman, the patient and her legal advisors have raised questions about the quality of the review and consultation carried out by NHS Lothian before making its decision. They say insufficient evidence had been gathered and so breached sections of the Equality Act.

The British Homeopathic Association (BHA) of medical homeopaths is reported as having always questioned the serious flaws in the consultation process. BHA chief executive Cristal Sumner said:

“There is no conceivable way that the decision of NHS Lothian to stop funding homeopathy is better for patients or the NHS and it is only right its decision is being challenged…It was a consultation which failed to appropriately review and weigh actual patient feedback from public meetings and written responses, instead placing too much importance on the results of an online survey which had no security to ensure only those in Lothian replied.

“NHS Lothian have not only failed to understand the impact withdrawing the service will have on the patients who use it, but also the financial impact it will have on NHS Lothian’s other services when these patients, often with chronic health problems, have their very cost-effective treatment of choice removed and must access more expensive drugs and treatments though the NHS.”

The British Medical Association (BMA) of conventional doctors welcomed the decision to end funding for homeopathy.

More Information: Legal bid to save homeopathy on the NHS