The petition is to "Save Our NHS" from being privatised and becoming a fee paying service (like America), which the Coalition government has been taking strident steps towards.
It used to be legal obligation that the Secretary of Health (i.e. the government) was responsible for the health of all British citizens, but this was repealed by the Health and Social Care Act 2012.
Thanks Dave.
Under the Tories' Austerity Drive there have been vast budget cuts to NHS services, presumably so that when things get so bad, government can turn around and point and say "see, told you it doesnt work! What we need is private investment".
The trouble with this is that patients then become customers, and the purpose of the service is not to treat the ill but to generate profit. As a result, people do not get the treatment they need and in many cases will be priced out of it.
So today, me and Avis and hundreds of other volunteers across the UK took to the streets with petition and pen and asked people to support the campaign. The goal is to put pressure on all parliamentary candidates in the run up to the general election to make the protection of free Healthcare a priority of their agenda. We did our best in the cold and rain to gather over 70 signatures (who could say no to two right on do-gooder dorks like this):
the total for the whole campaign now around 350,500.
To find our more and add your name to the petition if you havent already, click here:
https://you.38degrees.org.uk/efforts/save-our-nhs/near/new
