HEALTH chiefs have agreed to cut the number of IVF cycles offered to couples in Knutsford and east Cheshire from three to one.
At a governing body meeting yesterday, March 29, NHS Eastern Cheshire clinical commissioning group (CCG) voted for the move, which is expected to help it make savings of £400,000 a year.
The CCG also agreed to stop funding breast reduction and correction surgery, and other cosmetic procedures.
Dr Mike Clark is clinical lead for service review consultation at NHS Eastern Cheshire CCG and GP at High Street Surgery, in Macclesfield.
He said: “None of us enjoyed making these decisions – and in an ideal world there would be no need to restrict access to care.
“However, these decisions are expected to make savings of £400,000 a year and help protect services, including urgent and emergency care, which are needed by many more people than those to which access will now be restricted.”
The move follows consultation held by the CCG, which attracted 460 responses.
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