Richard Holden, MP for North West Durham, has seen the successful resolution of a serious casework issue.
Richard was contacted by Michelle, from Consett, regarding the recent birth of her child and the ante and post natal care she received. An error was made on Michelle's prescription exemption form meaning that she was forced to pay for two prescriptions where she shouldn’t have had to, and she was also forced to pay £150 for a medical procedure for her baby following the birth. Whilst the prescription payments were refunded, the hospital refused to refund her for the sum of £150, despite the fact that she had been assured that the payment she was forced to make was due to a communication error between hospitals.
Following intervention from Richard’s office, who reached out to local hospitals and healthcare professionals, it was confirmed that the constituent would receive a full refund for the £150 that she had to pay.
Commenting, Richard said:
“I am absolutely delighted that we resolved this case for Michelle. Having a baby is a wonderful thing and should be a time of joy but, for Michelle, it was sadly marred by the fact she was forced to pay a large sum of money for a procedure which should not have cost her anything, which caused undue stress at what should have been a time of happiness.
“I am really pleased that we were able to step in and see a resolution to this case that the constituent was pleased with. I want to say a big congratulations to Michelle on the birth of her child and I hope that mother, baby and the rest of the family are all doing well and looking forward to a relaxing Christmas.”
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