Extract from:
http://www.societyguardian.co.uk/pledges/story/0,8150,488815,00.html

SocietyGuardian staff
Thursday May 10, 2001

The main points of the Conservative manifesto relating to:

Health and social care

• Increase NHS funding - by matching Labour spending plans and encouraging more use of private health insurance by removing tax penaties.
• Give patients and GPs the right to choose the hospital in which treatment will take place.
• Introduce limits on NHS waiting times - the patient's guarantee will give patients a maximum waiting time, starting with cardiac and cancer services.
• Allow alternative and complementary therapies on the NHS, provided they are of proven clinical effectiveness.
• Allow GPs the freedom to opt out of primary care trusts.
• Introduce an exceptional medicines fund to ensure patients receive expensive new drugs - such as Beta Interferon for multiple sclerosis.
• Protect the savings and homes of people needing long term care.
• Protect the savings of disabled people and create a new agency to fund physiotherapy or physical aids needed to help jobless disabled people back to work.