Oxfordshire PCT are currently in a consultation period about whether the local NHS should stop prescribing gluten-free foods.

The public consultation officially closed at the beginning of March. This consultation was held to seek the views of local people who have coeliac disease, as well as parents, carers and healthcare professionals.  This consultation will allow the PCT to assess the impact should they decide to remove funding for NHS prescriptions of gluten-free foods.

Getting your voice heard

The proposed changes will affect all coeliacs and those caring for coeliacs in the Oxfordshire area. They would no longer have access to gluten free food on prescription. If these plans go ahead and the prescription status for gluten free food is lost, it cannot be reinstated.

Although the online consultation has now closed the decision has not yet been made and there is still a chance for you to have your say.

You can write to you local PCT via email or Post:

Email  - talking.health@oxfordshirepct.nhs.uk

Post -  Communications and Engagement, NHS Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire Cluster, Jubilee House, 5510 John Smith Drive, Oxford Business Park South, Oxford, OX4 2LH

Write to your GP or Dietician

Write to your local MP http://www.theyworkforyou.com/

Sign the online petition - http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/27968
   

Finding out more

Coeliac UK has been actively campaigning and petitioning against these cuts on your behalf and we at Juvela very much support their stance that gluten-free prescribing focusing on staple foods should be viewed as an essential NHS service available to all patients with diagnosed coeliac disease.  All evidence based clinical guidelines relevant to coeliac disease agree that access to prescriptions is a necessary part of the care you receive and  helps support you in maintaining  your gluten-free diet and your health.

To find out more about what Coeliac UK has been doing on your behalf please visit their website.

You will also find guidance on how to lobby your local MP and gain media interest.

What Juvela are doing

Juvela have responded as a manufacturer to this consultation.  We have informed the PCT that gluten-free foods available on prescription are not the same as those available through retail outlets. Our food range covers only those essential foods that you need to successfully manage your diet including bread, flour mix, pasta, crackers and pizza bases. Our products are specially formulated to meet the unique dietary requirements of people with coeliac disease and no one else. 

We recently attended the Oxfordshire Coeliac Group AGM, where restrcitions were the hot topic. Dr Sohail Butt, GP, Sam Leonard, Dietitian & Brian Adams, local coeliac highlighted the importance of gluten-free foods on prescription. We are supporting the local group in their efforts to stop the restrictions being imposed in their area.

If you would like to discuss this important issue with us, or require any further information please contact us on 0800 783 1992 or info@juvela.co.uk