MINISTERS have been asked to intervene to stop the closure of an alcohol detox unit in Lancaster.
The request has come from the city's MP Ben Wallace who earlier this week visited the Ridge Lea Hospital to talk to staff following Morecambe Bay Primary Care Trust's announcement that the Castle Unit may have to close to help stem a multi-million pound budget shortfall.
Patients already facing a three-month wait for treatment could see that delay extended to six months if the Lancaster unit closes.
Mr Wallace says: "It is simply ludicrous that we are on the brink of losing Ridge Lea Hospital's alcohol detox unit just as longer drinking hours come into force.
"Many health staff rightly fear that the loss of the Castle Unit will lead to more wrecked lives and more broken families."
He has written to Health Ministers urging them to intervene to prevent the loss of the vital' service.
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