06
Jan 2015
Failing better care fund leaves NHS facing £700m black hole
A plan to keep patients out of hospital and save the NHS £1 billion a year has been branded a “shambles” after it was found by the Government’s spending watchdog that it would save less than a third of the anticipated amount.
The proposals to transfer £2 billion of funding from the NHS to social care in an effort to reduce hospital admissions, was criticised in a report by the National Audit Office, as not thought through adequately. The report added that the plans had been based on “optimism rather than evidence”.
The report said “There is limited evidence that integrated care is cost-effective in sustainably reducing unplanned hospital admissions.”
It also stated that given admissions had risen 47 per cent in the last 15 years, the assumption that these would fall by 3.5 per cent in a year was highly ambitious.
The Better Care Fund is seen as crucial in attempts by the Government to minimise rising healthcare costs, waiting times for operations and plug gaps in social care which have resulted from council budget cuts.
Margaret Hodge, chair of the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee, said “Planning for the Better Care Fund has been a shambles. The fund is a complex and challenging initiative that clearly requires strong leadership and effective cross-Government working, both of which have been lacking.
“It is hard to believe that until recently there was no central management team or programme director, and there were only limited attempts to identify and manage risks to successful delivery.
“Such incompetence from Departments is unacceptable at a time when the number of people most likely to need care is rising, and overall funding is falling.”
Labour’s shadow Health Secretary, Andy Burnham, said “The revelation that the Government miscalculated the savings will severely dent public confidence in this policy. It raises major doubts about Jeremy Hunt’s grip on finances and explains why the NHS is heading into deficit with more and more hospitals needing bailouts.”
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Posted by Tony May, Partner/head of Clinical Negligence Department, Chadwick Lawrence LLP (tonymay@chadlaw.co.uk ), Medical negligence lawyers and clinical negligence solicitors in Huddersfield, Leeds, Wakefield and Halifax, West Yorkshire.
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