Many obese patients in Britain are forced to gaining more weight in order to receive approval from the National Health Service (NHS) for weight-loss surgery.
NHS Guidelines require a BMI of 40 or higher, but in some parts of Britain, doctors will only operate on patients with a BMI above 50.
Surgeons say the restrictions are unethical and unfair, and patients should be treated early to avoid life-threatening complications and reduce costs of obesity-related medical care.
"In many regions the criteria are being raised to save money," said surgeon and professor Mike Larvin. "Patients are being denied life-saving and cost-effective treatments and effectively encouraged to eat more in order to gain a more risky operation down the line."
To read the full article, please visit Obese Britons Gain Weight to Qualify for State-Funded Surgery.
Was this article helpful? If so, comment below and let other users know what you think.
Resources
To learn more about weight-loss surgery, check out these titles on Amazon.com:
The Weight-Loss Surgery Connection, by Melissa deBin-Parish
A Guide to Weight Loss Surgery: Professional and Personal Views (The Praeger Series on Contemporary Health and Living), by Rhonda L. Hamilton M.D.
TrackBack URI for this entry
Subscribe to this comment's feed
