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NHS England: King's Fund says £2bn more needed next year | NHS England: King's Fund says £2bn more needed next year |
(about 11 hours later) | |
The NHS in England should be given £2bn more next year, the King's Fund health think tank has said. | The NHS in England should be given £2bn more next year, the King's Fund health think tank has said. |
Calls for extra money for the service are intensifying after the latest figures showed the deficit growing as performance deteriorates. | Calls for extra money for the service are intensifying after the latest figures showed the deficit growing as performance deteriorates. |
Halfway through the 2014-15 financial year the service's deficit had reached £630m - up from £500m a few months ago. | Halfway through the 2014-15 financial year the service's deficit had reached £630m - up from £500m a few months ago. |
It comes as targets are being breached for A&E, hospital operations and cancer treatment. | It comes as targets are being breached for A&E, hospital operations and cancer treatment. |
In a briefing document, the King's Fund said the levels of deficits - revealed in official NHS board papers - were "unprecedented" and showed financial distress had become "endemic". | In a briefing document, the King's Fund said the levels of deficits - revealed in official NHS board papers - were "unprecedented" and showed financial distress had become "endemic". |
It follows an indication by Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg that he expected extra money for the health service to be part of next week's autumn statement from Chancellor George Osborne. | It follows an indication by Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg that he expected extra money for the health service to be part of next week's autumn statement from Chancellor George Osborne. |
The NHS budget, which currently stands at £113bn, has been increasing in real terms over the course of this parliament by an average 0.7% a year. Next year it will rise to £115bn - but the think-tank said it still needed another £2bn. | |
But the King's Fund said increasing demand combined with the need to invest in extra staff after the Stafford Hospital scandal had pushed many parts of the NHS - particularly hospitals - into the red. | But the King's Fund said increasing demand combined with the need to invest in extra staff after the Stafford Hospital scandal had pushed many parts of the NHS - particularly hospitals - into the red. |
It comes after almost a decade of surpluses in the health service was brought to a halt in 2013-14 by a £100m deficit. | It comes after almost a decade of surpluses in the health service was brought to a halt in 2013-14 by a £100m deficit. |
But that now looks set to be dwarfed by the debts mounting this year. | But that now looks set to be dwarfed by the debts mounting this year. |
While the second half of the financial year tends to be better than the first, most forecasts are not predicting a significant improvement in fortunes. | While the second half of the financial year tends to be better than the first, most forecasts are not predicting a significant improvement in fortunes. |
King's Fund chief executive Chris Ham said: "There is scope to improve productivity in the NHS, but this will not be enough to respond to unprecedented pressures on budgets and meet rising demand for services. | King's Fund chief executive Chris Ham said: "There is scope to improve productivity in the NHS, but this will not be enough to respond to unprecedented pressures on budgets and meet rising demand for services. |
"Unless more money is found a financial crisis is inevitable next year and patients will bear the cost as waiting times rise and quality of care deteriorates." | "Unless more money is found a financial crisis is inevitable next year and patients will bear the cost as waiting times rise and quality of care deteriorates." |
The warning comes just weeks after the government announced a total of £700m will be pumped into the system to help it cope this winter. | The warning comes just weeks after the government announced a total of £700m will be pumped into the system to help it cope this winter. |
The four-hour waiting time target has been missed almost on a weekly basis since the summer with performance at its lowest level for this time of year for a decade. | The four-hour waiting time target has been missed almost on a weekly basis since the summer with performance at its lowest level for this time of year for a decade. |
Howard Catton, of the Royal College of Nursing, said one of the key issues to tackle was the "runaway spending on agency staff". | Howard Catton, of the Royal College of Nursing, said one of the key issues to tackle was the "runaway spending on agency staff". |
The board papers issued by the two regulators in the health service - Monitor and the NHS Trust Development Authority - highlighted this as a problem. | The board papers issued by the two regulators in the health service - Monitor and the NHS Trust Development Authority - highlighted this as a problem. |
"It is a direct consequence of short-term workforce planning and a failure to train and retain enough nurses, which has forced desperate trusts to spend over-the-odds just to maintain safe staffing levels," Mr Catton said. | "It is a direct consequence of short-term workforce planning and a failure to train and retain enough nurses, which has forced desperate trusts to spend over-the-odds just to maintain safe staffing levels," Mr Catton said. |
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