25th October 2021

Sunak’s NHS bonus is for capital expenditure
Chief of the Kings Fund says the money is welcome but “will we have any staff to put in them, to actually work them [new equipment]?” The primary focus to cut the backlog should be the staff shortage; for example, there are 39000 nursing staff vacancies.

Covid tests: private firms shouldn’t be doing them
It was due to members of the public raising concerns that the problem at the private lab run by Immensa came to light. Health officials should have known about major failings at the lab within days of the problem arising, rather than taking weeks to shut down operations at the site.

F-to-F appointments: government versus GPs
The government has offered GPs more money, but GPs insist it not the issue. A GP says she has never faced a tougher year, a trainee doctor says he can see why others are leaving the profession. Now GPs threaten industrial action.

How will government’s health database be used?
OpenDemocracy has written to Sajid Javid demanding that he offer a clearer explanation of what the BAE system is for, and to what extent other private companies will be involved in its set-up, operation and processing of sensitive personal data.

NHS charging patients: £54 million written off
Is the overhead cost of charging patients worth it? Does the government persist with hostile environment policies without knowing their cost-benefit? A London hospital has just written off £54 million. Here are some testimonies of patients, some asylum seekers, who couldn’t afford care and who died.