PLANS to slash more than £20 million from hospital budgets across Worcestershire could result in major cuts in services for Wyre Forest patients.

The district's health campaigning MP, Dr Richard Taylor, said there were a number of "intensely worrying" proposals in the pre-consultation paper published by the Worcestershire Acute Hospitals Trust.

One was that the trust should "cease trading in unprofitable activity", which he said, would lead to cuts in services for the chronically ill and the elderly.

The trust also plans to consider reducing minor injury provision across the county which Dr Taylor warned would be "disastrous" in the extra work it would push onto existing accident and emergency departments.

"I do not think the MIU in Kidderminster will be affected because it is already operating at a minimal level and serves a population of more than 100,000, but they could be looking at places like Evesham and Tenbury," he said.

A proposal to save £65,000 by axing one of three chemotherapy suites in Worcestershire could result in Kidderminster's being closed down, which Dr Taylor said would be traumatic for cancer sufferers.

"The reason we have one is because it was initially funded by public subscription amounting to £400,000 through the Hospital League of Friends.

"Chemotherapy can make patients feel very sick or even worse and to have to travel by car, bus or ambulance 16 to 20 miles is just not on," he said.

Dr Taylor added that the need to reduce bed occupancy rates at Worcestershire hospitals would lead to job losses.

The Trust is to consider a range of cost-cutting options, which also include the downgrading of the Alexandra Hospital at Redditch and more acute services being transferred to Worcestershire Royal.

Dr Taylor said the Government would blame the cash crisis on bad management but he believed it was a result of years of under funding compounded by what he called the Government's "unworkable and unthoughtout reforms." He added: "The Government is damaging the health service beyond repair."