Doctors yesterday called for an "informed discussion" about the future funding of the NHS.
Doctors yesterday called for an "informed discussion" about the future funding of the NHS.
Members of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (RCPE) said a debate was needed about how long the country could afford to pay for free healthcare for all.
The National Health Service was set up in 1948 to provide universal care across the UK. But members of the RCPE said that during the last year the NHS has found itself under increasing financial pressure.
New and expensive drug treatments and an ageing population are putting the health service under pressure, and the NHS could also suffer from a reduction in public spending in the future.
The RCPE call came after the Scottish Government announced record funding for the NHS in February. More than £8.64bn was given to the country's 14 regional health authorities for the next financial year, mostly for day-to-day running costs. However, it was the lowest rise for 10 years.
Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon, who unveiled the rise during a visit to St John's Hospital in Livingston, West Lothian, said: "This record funding for NHS boards across Scotland underlines this government's unshakeable commitment to our publicly-owned health service."
Dr Stuart Rodger of the RCPE said: "Rationing of NHS treatment is a very sensitive subject and clearly goes against the founding principle of the NHS, which sought to provide free care for all at the point of need.
"Logically, it can be seen that faced with limited budgets, the NHS cannot indefinitely continue to afford to fund free care for all."
He added: "We have an ageing population in Scotland and the rest of the UK, life expectancy is increasing in a range of disease areas, a new generation of increasingly expensive drug treatments are coming on to the market, and the NHS also faces significant public health challenges in the form of rising obesity and alcohol-related harm.
"It is clear that this situation is not sustainable financially, particularly when taking into the account the anticipated impact of the recession on the NHS, and that something will have to give if the NHS is to survive."
Dr Rodger spoke out on the day the issue was discussed at a conference in Edinburgh, organised by the RCPE.
He said: "For doctors alone it is hard to consider such matters, as we are committed to providing the highest quality of patient care which we believe patients deserve and expect.
"We firmly believe that decisions about treatment should be based on clinical need and not on cost. However, we do recognise that NHS budgets are not unlimited.
"This is why we believe it is vital to encourage everyone with an interest in the future of the NHS to participate in informed discussion about its future and funding."
