Health worker union Unison hits back at US criticism of the NHS.

The UK's largest public sector union has waded into the US healthcare debate, issuing fact sheets to sister organisations to counter the spread of what it claims are "gross lies" about the NHS.

Unison issued the flyer titled Why We Love The NHS to America's largest unions to hand out to members as President Barack Obama attempts to rally support for controversial reforms aimed at increasing access and lowering costs in the US system.

The intervention comes after the UK health service was dragged into an increasingly bitter argument, with right wing commentators characterising the NHS as "evil" and "Orwellian".

Unison said that some of the claims being made, such as patients over a certain age are refused treatments for brain tumours and heart surgery, were simply untrue.

The body, which represents 1.3 million public sector workers in the UK, added that "rogue British commentators" such as Tory MEP Daniel Hannan were attempting to foster a picture of the NHS being unpopular and unresponsive.

In an attempt to counter claims made against the UK health system, the fact sheet contains figures from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the World Health Organisation (WHO) and other respected bodies that show the NHS in a better light.

It notes that the NHS regulator recorded a 92% approval rating in its last patient survey and that comparative studies between the US and UK health care services placed the British system higher.

The fact sheet also attempts to clarify the role of the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE).

In the US, right wing commentators have characterised the body as a "death panel" with the power to decide who should and should not be eligible for life-saving drugs and treatments.

Dave Prentis, general secretary of Unison, said: "I, like so many other people in the UK, owe my life to the NHS. We are outraged by the gross lies and distortions being spread in the US about our NHS. A universal health care system that is free at the point of need is something that we can all be proud of. It is a mark of a civilised, caring society."