Now NHS cuts are stripping basic medicines from the poor | Polly Toynbee

The government tries to deny cuts exist. But some hapless GPs are being forced to stop providing everyday medications to those unable to pay for themThe retreat of the health service is stealthy and haphazard, as a creeping postcode lottery of cuts gradually erodes the “national” in NHS. IVF, hip and knee operations are being cut back randomly in some regions. In some places patients can only get one cataract fixed: seeing with one eye is enough. Related: Leak shows 'devastating' imp