LET your doctor decide - that is the message behind a major new campaign launched by The Press today, which calls on North Yorkshire and York Primary Care Trust (PCT) to scrap its "judge and jury" panel to vet patients.

We are calling on the primary care trust bosses to abandon its Prior Approval panel, which has been set up to bar patients whose cases are not deemed serious enough, from the treatment their own doctor thinks they need.

Doctors have said patients' lives could be put at risk because of the PCT's move. Today we urge the trust to abandon its barrier system - and allow patients' own doctors to be the judges of what clinical treatment they should get.

Our campaign has already won backing from leading local GPs.

Dr John Givans, secretary of the North Yorkshire Local Medical Committee, said: "I certainly back this campaign: Let Your Doctor Decide.

"It's your GP. A patient's GP knows exactly what your clinical needs are. It's not some person in an office somewhere, who's looking at bits of paper, who will know what the patient's needs are."

As exclusively reported in The Press, the row over the prior approval system blew up earlier this year when the PCT wrote to doctors telling them it was being imposed.

In an attempt to claw back millions of pounds that have been overspent, the trust announced it was suspending a wide range of hospital procedures including surgery for varicose veins, epidurals for chronic lower back pain, wisdom tooth extraction, bunion surgery, IVF and vasectomies.

These procedures have been put off for three months, but others - such as facet joint injections for chronic lower back pain, and the removal of non-malignant skin lesions - have been permanently suspended.

The PCT is also temporarily stopping GPs' direct access to MRI, CT and Dexa scans (for osteoperosis patients).

The prior approval system means:

* Any GP who wants to refer a patient for an MRI, CT or Dexa scan to find out what is wrong with them, must first send it to the PCT - who could deny the scan.

* Patients judged by their doctor to need a hospital procedure on the trust's list of banned treatments must have their case assessed by the PCT as an exceptional case. Their operation could easily be refused if it is not judged to be serious enough.

One of the most controversial aspects of the move is the suspension of direct access for scans.

GPs have argued that could mean patients with unsuspected tumours might go undiagnosed if they were refused a scan - which previously could have been picked up before it was too late. Doctors have also said medics on the prior approval panel - which includes two GPs - could risk being sued.

* See The Press tomorrow for your chance to back our campaign.