Public will decide on controversial treatments in Wales

The Welsh Assembly Government has announced plans to establish a panel made up of members of the public to decide which specialist treatments should be provided by the NHS.

Health minister Edwina Hart said: “I am not one of those people who believes that lay people cannot be trusted to be involved in these sorts of decisions. I am convinced that substantially increased engagement by members of the lay public in these profoundly difficult decisions will lead to improved transparency and public confidence in both the processes and its outcomes.”