WATCHDOGS have called a cross-party summit meeting to hold health bosses to account for the future of services in North Yorkshire.

The scrutiny of health committee wants to question them about the shape of health services for the county over the next five years.

And in particular they want answers over whether there are any plans to downgrade or close any more hospital and community health services.

The committee has voiced concerns over NHS England’s plans to re-organise the delivery of NHS services and the impact it could have on a large rural county like North Yorkshire.

Sustainability and Transformation Plans cover 44 different areas of the country and are intended to accelerate the implementation of an NHS five-year efficiency plan as well as developing new models of care and improving health and wellbeing.

But Scrutiny of health Committee chairman Cllr Jim Clark claims the plans are being rushed through and are modelled around the needs of urban centres, threatening to leach health funds from North Yorkshire’s largely rural areas.

“The county has already seen reductions in health provision,” he said.

“The Lambert Memorial Community Hospital in Thirsk has been closed due to shortages of skilled health care staff, concerns have been raised about the future of Ripon Community Hospital, clinical commissioning groups are limiting access to elective surgery based upon people’s BMI and whether they smoke or not, and there is a national review of funding to community pharmacies.”

North Yorkshire is one of a few counties that are covered by three STP plans - each based around large urban areas like Leeds and Bradford, Middlesbrough, and Hull.

And the county council is actively asking the Secretary of State and NHS England to review boundaries and create one STP for North Yorkshire.