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| NHS needs emergency cash boost or care could suffer, ministers told | NHS needs emergency cash boost or care could suffer, ministers told |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Ministers are under pressure to give the NHS an emergency cash injection after official figures showed hospitals overspent by £1bn last year. | Ministers are under pressure to give the NHS an emergency cash injection after official figures showed hospitals overspent by £1bn last year. |
| NHS providers of care in England – hospitals as well as mental health, ambulance and community services – ended 2014-15 with £821.6m in deficit. That was more than seven times higher than the previous year’s £107m shortfall. | NHS providers of care in England – hospitals as well as mental health, ambulance and community services – ended 2014-15 with £821.6m in deficit. That was more than seven times higher than the previous year’s £107m shortfall. |
| Rising demand for care, a soaring bill for agency staff and the need to make billions of pounds of efficiency savings contributed to the serious financial downturn and led to warnings that this could soon damage patient care. | Rising demand for care, a soaring bill for agency staff and the need to make billions of pounds of efficiency savings contributed to the serious financial downturn and led to warnings that this could soon damage patient care. |
| Related: Biggest NHS trust is failing on safety and quality of care, says watchdog | Related: Biggest NHS trust is failing on safety and quality of care, says watchdog |
| “Plugging the growing black hole in NHS finances must now be an urgent priority for the government. There is a real prospect of deficits snowballing and, unless the government finds extra money, an accelerating decline in NHS performance and a deterioration in patient care”, said Richard Murray, director of policy at the King’s Fund. | “Plugging the growing black hole in NHS finances must now be an urgent priority for the government. There is a real prospect of deficits snowballing and, unless the government finds extra money, an accelerating decline in NHS performance and a deterioration in patient care”, said Richard Murray, director of policy at the King’s Fund. |
| Ministers will have to decide whether to give the NHS more money, possibly in the 8 July budget, or try to restore financial discipline by, for example, ordering a clampdown on agency staff. Any reduction in the number of staff on duty could jeopardise the safety and quality of patient care. | Ministers will have to decide whether to give the NHS more money, possibly in the 8 July budget, or try to restore financial discipline by, for example, ordering a clampdown on agency staff. Any reduction in the number of staff on duty could jeopardise the safety and quality of patient care. |
| NHS sources say Jeremy Hunt, the health secretary, is deeply frustrated that hospitals’ finances and performance against waiting time targets have worsened despite him giving them well over £1bn since 2013 to cope with winter pressures and cut the waiting list for planned treatment. | NHS sources say Jeremy Hunt, the health secretary, is deeply frustrated that hospitals’ finances and performance against waiting time targets have worsened despite him giving them well over £1bn since 2013 to cope with winter pressures and cut the waiting list for planned treatment. |
| “We know the NHS is busier than ever and trusts are facing challenges. However, we expect them to show tight financial grip and live within their means,” said a Department of Health spokesman. | “We know the NHS is busier than ever and trusts are facing challenges. However, we expect them to show tight financial grip and live within their means,” said a Department of Health spokesman. |
| The Conservatives have pledged to give the NHS the extra £8bn a year by 2020 demanded by the NHS England chief executive, Simon Stevens. And the chancellor, George Osborne, gave the NHS an extra £2bn in the autumn statement. But the scale of the growing deficit gives them a more immediate problem. | The Conservatives have pledged to give the NHS the extra £8bn a year by 2020 demanded by the NHS England chief executive, Simon Stevens. And the chancellor, George Osborne, gave the NHS an extra £2bn in the autumn statement. But the scale of the growing deficit gives them a more immediate problem. |
| NHS foundation trusts, which are meant to be strong performers financially, ended the year £349m in the red – the first time they are in deficit at the end of a year – according to figures released by Monitor, which regulates the sector. It had expected a deficit of just £10m. | NHS foundation trusts, which are meant to be strong performers financially, ended the year £349m in the red – the first time they are in deficit at the end of a year – according to figures released by Monitor, which regulates the sector. It had expected a deficit of just £10m. |
| Related: NHS lacks money and staff for seven-day operation, David Cameron told | Related: NHS lacks money and staff for seven-day operation, David Cameron told |
| The most financially stricken foundation trust, King’s College Hospital in London, ended the year £47m in the red. | The most financially stricken foundation trust, King’s College Hospital in London, ended the year £47m in the red. |
| Monitor said a rising pay bill, higher patient numbers and agency staff costs were key factors. “Without delivering substantial efficiency gains, the financial trajectory for 2015-16 and beyond is likely to deteriorate rapidly,” Monitor said. | Monitor said a rising pay bill, higher patient numbers and agency staff costs were key factors. “Without delivering substantial efficiency gains, the financial trajectory for 2015-16 and beyond is likely to deteriorate rapidly,” Monitor said. |
| NHS trusts ended 2014-15 in an even worse position, recording a collective deficit of £472.6m. Barts health, the NHS’s biggest trust, had the largest deficit with just under £80m, almost twice as much as anticipated. | NHS trusts ended 2014-15 in an even worse position, recording a collective deficit of £472.6m. Barts health, the NHS’s biggest trust, had the largest deficit with just under £80m, almost twice as much as anticipated. |
| The NHS Trust Development Authority (TDA), which regulates the trusts, blamed the grim picture on “an unplanned growth in demand for care in a hospital setting, particularly in urgent and emergency care; a significant increase in the use of agency and contract staff; [and] failure to deliver the levels of cost improvement schemes planned at the start of the financial year.” | The NHS Trust Development Authority (TDA), which regulates the trusts, blamed the grim picture on “an unplanned growth in demand for care in a hospital setting, particularly in urgent and emergency care; a significant increase in the use of agency and contract staff; [and] failure to deliver the levels of cost improvement schemes planned at the start of the financial year.” |
| Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers, which represents hospitals, warned that providers of care would end up as much as £2.1bn in the red by next March unless urgent action is taken. | Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers, which represents hospitals, warned that providers of care would end up as much as £2.1bn in the red by next March unless urgent action is taken. |
| He added that while demand for care is growing at 4% a year, real-term funding is only increasing by about 1%. “Many commentators are now asking whether the current NHS service offering and standards are sustainable on current NHS funding levels and that this leaves a choice of either raising those funding levels or changing the service offering,” Hopson said. | |
| More hospitals are already failing to treat the required 95% of A&E patients within four hours, undertake planned operations within 18 weeks and treat cancer patients in 62 days, Monitor and the TDA confirmed. | More hospitals are already failing to treat the required 95% of A&E patients within four hours, undertake planned operations within 18 weeks and treat cancer patients in 62 days, Monitor and the TDA confirmed. |