'No decision' over Redditch A&E closure

Health trust officials in Worcestershire have met members of the public to discuss proposals which could see an A&E and maternity unit close.

Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust said it needed to save £50m by 2015 and has set out six proposals to make savings.

One suggestion is to close the A&E department and maternity departments at the Alexandra Hospital in Redditch.

Up to 4,000 people have signed a petition opposing the plans.

The meeting is one of several being held to explain the plans, the trust said.

David Law, a Bromsgrove GP and member of Redditch and Bromsgrove clinical commissioning board which will take on the county's primary care trust's role by April 2013, said no decision had been made yet.

"We want to be open and transparent and say: 'Look, there are difficulties that need to be resolved', and we need to do that together to work out what the best options are," he said.