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Tax hikes may be needed to avoid NHS cuts, specialists face redundancy, and pregnancy predicting formulae

In the news today, it has been suggested that taxes may need to be raised to avoid cuts being made to NHS front-line services.

Speaking to the BBC, Dr Mark Porter, the new chair of the BMA, said it was time to “re-examine the assumption” that the NHS could cope with its current level of funding .

 In other news, the Guardian has highlighted that hundreds of specialists in cancer, heart disease and stroke face being made redundant as a result of the new NHS commissioning board’s decision to shrink the number of clinical “networks”.

Experts say that these cuts could significantly hinder the fight against some of Britain’s biggest killer diseases.

 Elsewhere, the Telegraph reports on the comments from RCGP chair Dr Clare Gerada that the NHS has been left ‘in distress’ by health reforms.

Speaking to over 2,000 GPs gathered in Glasgow for their annual conference, Dr Gerada urged doctors to be optimistic about the future: ‘We’ll show courage, just as our forefathers did as they rose to the extraordinary challenges posed by post-war austerity and the uncertainties of the new NHS.’

 Meanwhile, it has been reported that researchers have devised a simple formula to help couples understand their chance of becoming pregnant naturally.

The calculations show that when a woman is 25, it will take 13 months for her odds of conceiving quickly to fall below ten per cent. But a 35-year-old woman has just six months before her chances fall below ten per cent.

It is hoped that the information with help make it easier for couples to discuss fertility issues with their GP.