NHS ten year plan has serious shortcomings say Lib Dems
On 7 January 2019, the Government unveiled their ten year plan for the National Health Service (NHS) to mark its 70th birthday.
The 10-year plan includes measures to prevent 150,000 heart attacks, strokes and dementia cases, and better access to mental health services for adults and children.
Delivering this ambitious plan is likely to be fatally undermined by insufficient resources, a staffing crisis and a failure to address the disastrous situation with social care.
The Government's commitment to a new focus on prevention rings hollow when the very services which help prevent elderly people ending up in hospital are at breaking point and vital public health budgets are progressively cut back.
The Liberal Democrats will continue to demand that the Government works with other parties to achieve a genuine long term, sustainable settlement for the NHS and social care.
We will keep making the case for a new, dedicated NHS and care tax to guarantee a modern, effective and efficient NHS and care system which will be there for our loved ones when they need it.
Cllr Richard Kemp, LGA Liberal Democrat Spokesman for Health and Social Care said:
"The NHS 10-year plan unveiled today has four serious shortcomings:
- "Talk of moving money towards prevention is welcome but hollow given that the Government has removed £80 million from this year's Public Health Budgets for councils which is approximately a 30% reduction since 2015.
- "It fails to recognise the underfunding of social care which is currently more than £2 billion underfunded and will rise to £4 billion by 2025. This means more people going into hospital than is necessary and staying there longer than is necessary.
- "There is no recognition here of the need to create parity between physical health and mental health.
- "The claims that we have an efficient system are far-fetched. The NHS is over-bureaucratised and consists of a series of warring factions, departments and Trusts. Local control needs to be given to the NHS bodies under democratic local structures.
"If we love our NHS we need to change it. This plan goes some small way to achieving this but shows once again the reluctance of NHS bosses to tackle crucial issues."
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/nhs-long-term-plan-launched