The Exorbitant Cost of Patient Line

Last Friday I was approached by a constituent, who was struggling with the cost of making telephone calls in Princess Alexandra Hospital.

I raised this straight away with the Health Minister in Parliament. It is outrageous that Harlow patients can only purchase one of two options: ‘Patientline’ for £5 or ‘hospedia’ for £10. This cost can really hurt longterm patients.

The Minister agreed to look into this, to see what can be done. This is the Hansard text:

Robert Halfon (Harlow) (Con): Will the Minister review the problem of highly priced patient lines and introduce competition, so that patients in Harlow and elsewhere no longer pay extortionate prices to watch TV or make phone calls?

Mr Burns: I am extremely grateful to my hon. Friend for raising an issue that I know is of concern to many people. Although I cannot make promises about the outcome of any review, he has my assurance that we will be looking into this, and that we take on board the concerns that have been expressed over a number of years.

The full Hansard can be seen here: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm/cmtoday/cmdebate/02.htm#d2e984

by Robert Halfon - www.roberthalfon.blogspot.com