With a strategy inspired by the Covid vaccine launch, Rishi Sunak has declared war on cancer, obesity, mental illness, and addiction.
Today, the Prime Minister announced financing of almost £113 million for research into cutting-edge therapies and technology, to foster breakthroughs and save billions of pounds.
Each “healthcare mission” will be supervised by an independent expert selected by a team that includes Dame Kate Bingham, who oversaw the vaccine task force.
Ministers believe that addressing the most significant concerns in each sector may save the NHS and the economy billions, with obesity alone predicted to cost the health service £6.1 billion annually.
It follows concerns that members of the armed forces could be drafted in to drive ambulances and work in hospitals to alleviate the disruption caused by nurses on strike next month and possible strikes by ambulance employees.
The funds will be allocated over the next few years to the top public health priority chosen by the NHS.
Approximately £22.5 million will be invested in cancer research to discover new medicines, including disease-specific vaccinations.
It will also be used to develop more effective and earlier cancer detection methods.
Research into mental health will receive £40,2 million to develop digital technologies to support patients at home, such as devices that allow people to check their mental health and report immediately if they need assistance.
Approximately £20 million has been set aside to combat obesity, with a portion of the funds going toward the development of new drugs, some of which can reduce a person’s weight by more than 20%.
In addition, £30.5 million will be allocated to the issue of addiction to assist prevent overdose deaths in the United Kingdom.
Mr. Sunak stated, “The NHS confronts significant difficulties, which is why we are investing over £100 million in the technology and medicines of the future to solve some of the country’s greatest public health concerns.”
This financing will enhance patient outcomes, alleviate systemic stresses, and ensure that we are among the first to benefit from medical advances.
Significantly, it will also help save the NHS millions of pounds that would otherwise be spent on patient care – for instance, by addressing obesity, which costs the health service over £6 billion annually.
The highly successful vaccine taskforce, which procured millions of life-saving vaccines in record time during the pandemic, will now serve as a model for attracting the best talent and expertise from around the world and driving investment in research and development, which is a tremendously positive development.
The government hopes to replicate the vaccine model by leveraging the best research talent and eliminating “unnecessary bureaucracy.”
Today, Mr. Sunak, the Health Secretary, Steve Barclay, and the Business Secretary, Grant Shapps, will meet with NHS officials, worldwide chief executives, and important business figures to implement the objectives.
NHS chief executive Amanda Pritchard stated, ‘We have already witnessed the incredible ways in which new technology and innovation can transform NHS care and the lives of patients across the country, from glucose monitors for diabetics to laser therapy for those with epilepsy to genetic life-saving testing for severely ill children and infants.
“Just today, we expedited a new medicine deal for men with prostate cancer that can increase their chances of survival, demonstrating that the NHS is already at the forefront of providing patients with the most advanced therapies.
Together with our partners, we wish to expand upon this effort to address the nation’s greatest healthcare concerns.
The funding follows the introduction of the dementia mission in memory of Dame Barbara Windsor in August — supported by £95 million — to increase the quantity and pace of clinical trials into the disease.
While many have praised Mr. Sunak’s offer, others have cautioned that the NHS is already grappling with long delays for consultations and ambulances, a backlog in discharging patients, and staffing concerns, with nurses poised to protest over wages.
The British Medical Association stated that the plan must be accompanied by additional investments in the NHS and social system.
Professor David Strain, chairman of the medical academic staff committee, stated, “Doctors are already struggling to mend a shattered social safety net.”
‘A better social safety net, supported by well-funded public services, would prevent tens of thousands of people from ever needing NHS services.
‘It is also obvious that the government has to invest more immediately in the NHS.
‘Despite difficulties in GP practices, hospitals, and other healthcare settings, the funding for the health service was effectively cut again in the fall statement,’
This is preventing the NHS from addressing the backlog and giving treatment to individuals in dire need, creating unimaginable agony across the nation.
Officials in the health and defense sectors are preparing contingency plans for armed forces personnel to drive ambulances and work in hospitals if hundreds of thousands of NHS employees go on strike next month.
On December 15 and 20, nurses are scheduled to strike across the United Kingdom, while ambulance drivers and paramedics are voting on whether to join them on the picket lines.
More than 850,000 NHS employees, including nurses, junior doctors, midwives, and those working in blood and transplant services, have either been balloted or are due to be balloted about strike action over wages.
According to a story in The Times, the government could use military aid to the civil authorities protocol (Maca) to maintain essential services as pressure grows on NHS waiting times.
During the coronavirus pandemic, maca was utilized to assist health professionals with immunizations, testing, and the distribution of protective equipment.
The Department of Health and Social Care has not formally requested assistance from the Ministry of Defense.
Health Secretary Steve Barclay stated that he ‘truly regrets‘ nursing staff walkouts, but that their demands for a 19% pay increase are just ‘unaffordable
In the meantime, an examination conducted today found that the NHS pays almost 2,000 hospital administrators six-figure salaries.
The number is 15% higher than it was twelve months ago. And roughly a third earn over £200,000 annually.
According to an analysis by The Telegraph, 2,056 hospital and commissioning board managers make at least £100,000 annually.
