I agree that the wording of the petition isn't great and there is a missed opportunity to put forward more convincing arguments for the CGM. If there are enough signatures to guarantee a parliamentary debate I will be writing to my MP, perhaps if we all did the same it would make for a better informed debate. Also, I think the point of making those petitions so easily accessible is to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to put their ideas forward, whether or not they can write to a basic elementary level. I think this petition does meet basic elementary requirements, with a few typos and I'll-advised exclamation marks - I think maybe Tim was exaggerating for comic effect?
The NICE guidelines do suggest that there may be slightly more chance of obtaining funding. However, it remains, essentially, entirely at the discretion of the CCG. I have been told that, regardless of clinical need, my CCG simply do not fund CGMs. My consultant told me that she has patients who are unable to work due to frequent hypos, but are refused funding for a CGM.
I think the basic problem is that the CCG would bear the capital costs of funding the CGM, but they don't see any of the cost saving benefits of improving control - they don't pay for dialysis (which would come out of the budget for the hospital trust), they don't pay for the care needed if someone can't go shopping on their own after a leg amputation (that would come out of the council's social care budget). I accept that these are massively extreme examples, but it is an illustration of how the isolated nature of funding decisions in the nhs means no one is incentivised to take a long term view. Which is terribly frustrating.
