NHS Reforms

When the NHS was launched in 1948, the first NHS pamphlet that landed on people’s doorsteps said of the new health service: “It’s not a charity. You’re paying for it, mainly as taxpayers”. Constituents of Norwich North certainly do pay for it. This year, the NHS will spend its original 1948 budget, adjusted for inflation, once every month. Our health budget is now bigger than the GDP of Greece.

As things stand, the NHS faces significant long term challenges. An aging population and the demand for cutting edge treatments and technologies mean that we must choose between ever higher costs and rising waiting lists, or reforming how we do healthcare.

The Health Secretary, when he says: “Health needs the revolution that has already come to other sectors like banking and shopping. With much greater patient choice, innovation, tech and AI - meaning more convenience, lower costs and reduced health disparities”.

That’s why I support the case for a programme of comprehensive reform, because we can’t just keep pumping more and more money into healthcare. The Government’s vision for reform will start what will be one of the most significant transfers of power and funding from the state to individuals and their families in decades.

As part of a new direction, the Government will put the full power of the NHS behind prevention – including the NHS budget. I believe we must also keep adopting new approaches to health and care, like our network of community diagnostics centres, which have been helping millions of patients benefit from earlier diagnostics closer to home, without ever having to set foot in a hospital.

When healthcare is personalised, built around the person and their family, it works better. These reforms will give constituents more power to determine their own health. Therefore, the Government wants to put more power in the hands of patients and their loved ones.

Personalisation is also about recognising that the NHS is not just an end itself, it’s a service for every constituent who relies on it. So these reforms will ensure that the voices of patients and their families are listened to continuously, not just when things go wrong.

I know from constituents they are concerned about long waits, due to the backlog that Covid has brought with it. However, the Government will be making a new offer, offering long-waiters the “right to choose” – with these patients being proactively contacted to discuss alternatives. This could be a trust nearby, a trust that’s further away – together with support for transport and accommodation - or going to the independent sector for treatment.

Prevention and personalisation will put our local health service on a stronger and more sustainable footing in the future, but driving improved performance across the NHS itself must start now!

These plans mark the starting point for reform, not the sum total, but they show how the Government, with my support as an MP, will seize the moment to keep the dream of 1948 alive. The shock of Covid and the urgent need for recovery has brought constituents of Norwich North to this crossroads right now. We have a once in a generation chance to reimagine how we do health - let’s seize it.

As always, if I can help constituents with any matter, please do email me on chloe@chloesmith.org.uk or ring my constituency office on 01603 414756.