Doctors' report claims: 'We no longer have free health care' - Independent Online Edition > Health Medical Health Medical Doctors' report claims: 'We no longer have free health care' By Andrew Johnson Published: 23 April 2007 Increasing numbers of patients are paying for private "top-up" treatments alongside NHS care, meaning the health service is no longer free, a report by leading doctors warns today. The doctors have written to all three main political parties, and the Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt, outlining their concerns that the idea of a free health service is a "political mirage". The study was written by three doctors, including Karol Sikora, professor of cancer medicine at Imperial College School of Medicine for the group Doctors for Reform, which has nearly 1,000 members, all working for the NHS. It says that patients are developing "sophisticated approaches to purchasing upgrades to their care", incl...