For the NHS in England, 2018 has begun much as it is likely to go on. A critical assessment by NHS Improvement reported that no more beds were available, because – again – of failure to provide more social care. Second, after the chancellor refused to release more cash for the core functions of the NHS in his autumn budget, NHS England began trying to manage a public debate about what it might have to ration. Ministers hope they can manage the NHS in a way that stops the funding crisis exploding into a national scandal. Yet neither NHS England, nor thinktanks such as the King’s Fund or the Nuffield Trust, believe it is possible to sustain world-beating levels of care on the existing budget.

Source: The Guardian January 03, 2018 18:45 UTC