CAMPAIGNERS are delighted with the news that a north Essex branch surgery has been saved.
The Pump House surgery, in Earls Colne, runs a weekly branch surgery in the village hall in Great Tey.
Doctors at the surgery have dispensing powers, which means they can give out medication if the patient lives more than a mile from their nearest pharmacist.
The Government had proposed changes which would mean surgeries could only dispense if the doctors’ main premises were more than a mile from a pharmacy.
Without the ability to dispense medication, the Pump House surgery would not have enough money to pay for the branch surgery which would have had to close.
However, health minister Phil Hope announced that, following the consultation, there would be “no change to the current arrangements”.
Sarah Harris, who launched a petition to save the branch surgery, said she was delighted at the news.
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