The NHS and Equalities watchdog has been accused of age discrimination (Image: Getty)
Campaigners have accused the equalities watchdog of not being “fit for purpose” because of its alleged failure to clamp down on discrimination against older people.
Silver Voicer, which champions the causes of people over 60, said the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) rejected two cases of potential age discrimination in the NHS.
Dennis Reed, director of Silver Voices, said: “The EHRC has now rejected both cases out of
hand because of “insufficient grounds” without providing any detail of their reasoning.
“The EHRC has shown that it is not fit for purpose as far as discrimination against older people is concerned.
We submitted cast-iron cases of discrimination by the NHS, where it is clear that life-saving services are being denied to older people, based on arbitrary age limits.
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“The Commission procrastinated on the cases for seven months, did not consult Silver Voices at any stage and then did not explain its grounds for ruling out enforcement action.
“Our reading of the situation is that we did have an irrefutable case , but the EHRC is afraid to take on the NHS establishment.”
Under equalities legislation, it is illegal to deny a public service based on age, and the EHRC was asked how it was permissible to stop cancer screening invitations at certain ages when the incidence of cancer generally increases with age.
The second case concerned the availability of shingles jabs which are not offered to certain age groups.
Mr Reed said: “Time and again the EHRC ducks taking action to eradicate ageism from UK society. We call into question whether the £14 million being spent annually from taxation on this body is cost effective under its current leadership”.
Silver Voices also accused the NHS of “institutional ageism”, particularly when it comes to treatments.
In a newsletter to members, it said: “Older people are used to being told that they are too old for an operation or ongoing medication.
This attitude came to the fore during the pandemic when older patients were routinely denied admission to hospital or to intensive care.
So-called ‘do not resuscitate’ notices were widely used. Thousands died who could have
been saved.
“We had hoped that our references to the EHRC would challenge the NHS to
rethink its attitudes to older patients, but sadly we have been let down by the very body that is supposed to enforce the legislation. The establishment has closed ranks against us.”
The NHS and the EHRC have been contacted for comment.
A spokesperson for the EHRC said: “In recent correspondence with Dennis Reed, we confirmed that we did not have sufficient grounds to justify the use of our regulatory powers. This followed a detailed internal process which looked at all available information.
“We also told Mr Reed that we are in contact with the Department for Health and Social Care, to ensure they are complying with their obligations under the Equality Act.
“Defending older people’s rights and eradicating age discrimination from society is woven into the fabric of our day-to-day work.
“We regularly give expert advice to other organisations, such as the Care Quality Commission, to make sure equality is carefully considered.
“This has led to changes to guidance and to our receiving intelligence about concerns in the bodies they inspect and regulate. Our Chief Executive has personally met the bosses of the Office of Rail and Road, Ofgem and other regulators to ensure that the sectors they oversee take account of the needs of vulnerable customers, including older people.”
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Nearly 105,000 people signed a petition calling for an end to “arbitrary” age limits on automatic cancer screening invitations.
The NHS Breast Screening Programme invites all women from the age of 50 to 70 registered with a GP for screening every 3 years.
Invites for bowel cancer screenings end at 74 across the UK while cervical cancer screening letters end at 64.
Campaign group Silver Voices’s case of potential age discrimination was rejected by the the Equalities and Human Rights Commission, the body charged with enforcing age discrimination legislation.
The petition championed breast cancer survivor Janette Smith’s story.
Launching the campaign in September last year, she said: “I feel I am one of the lucky ones because my breast cancer has been caught in time, even though at 76 I am no longer offered breast cancer screening every three years.
“In March this year I rang the Breast Care Clinic in Leicester to make an appointment for a mammogram. I am 76 and I was aware that from 71 I would no longer be called for routine checks, but I had kept diary reminders. I had no symptoms. Within a week I had an appointment and after further tests it was confirmed I had breast cancer.
“If I had waited for obvious symptoms to appear the outcome could have been much more serious, even life-threatening. Having spoken to a number of my friends I have been surprised by how many are unaware that automatic screening ends at 70. I shudder to think how many older women are getting late diagnoses of breast cancer because the universal screening service is no longer offered to them.”
Campaign group Silver Voices reported the NHS to the equalities watchdog over its “discriminatory” shingles vaccination rollout earlier this year.
The jab – which reduces the chances of developing the extremely painful viral skin condition – is offered to everyone when they turn 65 as well as those aged between 70 and 80.
But three million people aged between 66 and 69 are unable to get the shingles vaccine, called Shingrix.
This is because of limited supplies which has made Government advisers prioritise certain age groups.
Silver Voices had said this was “age discrimination” because research shows that people aged between 66 and 69 are just as at risk of developing shingles.
People aged 80 or older are not eligible to receive the vaccine because the vaccine’s effect diminishes with age.
More than 50,000 elderly Britons develop shingles every year, and nearly one in four will suffer from it during their lives.
The Equalities and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), which is the body charged with enforcing age discrimination legislation, rejected the case.
