HEALTH bosses have been accused of "skewing the figures" to justify refusing fertility treatment to couples struggling to have children.

York commissioners voted 5-4 against giving couples IVF, deciding it would cost too much - a decision which made York the only place in the UK not to offer a single cycle of the treatment.

York Outer MP Julian Sturdy has heavily criticised the Vale of York Clinical Commissioning Group's (CCG) decision and accused it of overstating the £2 million cost of the scheme "to suit their completely unsatisfactory decision”. In reality, the service would only cost £288,514 per year, he said.

However, the CCG has said it is standing by the figure as it anticipated a backlog of 500 people unable to access treatment in previous years all subsequently may come forward.

Mr Sturdy said: “The CCG clearly have a lot to answer for. The reality is that the cost of delivering this core service would not be anywhere near as much as the £2 million a year figured quoted, for the simple reason that many patients included in this five year backlog will now be well-past the age criteria.

"I call on the CCG to be straight with the people it is supposed to serve and look again at the very strong case for providing IVF on the NHS in our area.”

Mr Sturdy highlighted evidence from a Freedom of Information request, carried out by the Fertility Fairness Campaign, which he said showed the service would cost only £288,514 per year. The majority of the £2 million figure quoted by the CCG was arrived at by multiplying £288,514 by six - every year IVF has not been available in York, plus the cost of the first year itself.

Susan Seenan, chief executive of patient charity Infertility Network, said: "A lot of people going back five years will have had private treatment or fallen over the age threshold. All they are doing with that £2 million figure is trying to justify not providing the treatment."

A spokesperson for Vale of York CCG said it has been open and clear about funding which is based on National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) Fertility figures. It said about 100 couples would request help a year - which could total of 600 people in one year, if those who needed treatment in the previous five years come forward.

They said: "The £2m figure is based upon the cost of specialist subfertility investigations, counselling, fertility drugs, pre-treatment screening, semen analysis, full assessment and pre-treatment information session, stimulation medication, appropriate ultrasounds, pre-egg recovery counselling, Urine BHCG, early pregnancy scans and the freezing and storage of embryos - for one average IVF cycle."

They said IVF will be discussed at the December 2014 Governing Body.

Earlier this month mid Essex CCG voted to move towards a similar stance to York, voting to only offer IVF in exceptional circumstances, while people living in neighbouring areas were still entitled to up to three IVF attempts.

This week new guidelines by the by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) stated it was a core service and said it was "unacceptable" that parts of England were ignoring recommendations.

• For support with fertility issues, visit www.fertilityfairness.co.uk