NHS 'on deathrow due to Tory underfunding'
Here's a number of letters pointing the finger at the reason for the parlous state of the NHS; whereas this is a summary of how the NHS was allowed to get in this condition, and, this exposes real Tory thinking on the NHS.

NHS leaders warn 'act now on staffing crisis'
The NHS went into the pandemic with 40,000 nurse vacancies. Now, owing to staff Covid absences, it's in close to collapse. NHS leaders state the obvious - millions of patients will suffer worsening quality of care unless ministers take immediate action to alleviate the staffing crisis. But while the government throws billions at the private sector the publicly-run NHS is left on life support.

20 trusts declare a 'critical incident'
More than 20 hospital trusts have now declared a 'critical incident' amid staggering staffing shortages caused by the rapid spread of Omicron.

New Nightingale hubs, but where are the staff?
This is behind a paywall but tells the places where the new hubs will be. It also says. "The units would be led by hospital consultants and nurses, but with ... staff brought in with rapid training to be able to perform routine checks and other tasks.” Really, where exactly will we get trained staff? The old Nightingales were an expensive waste of our money.

People not confident NHS can care for them
An increasing number of Britons, one in four, do not believe that the NHS can care for them properly. Is it that the government funds private companies to fund NHS services, rather than funding the publicly-run NHS properly?

What do bankers know about healthcare?
No more than anyone who isn't medically trained of course, I hear you say. So why has a banker been chosen as chair of NHS England? Is it because anyone who is medically-trained is unlikely to concur with government plans for the NHS? 

Vallance counters accusations of Omicron fear-mongering
Have epidemiological modellers “spread gloom” about the Omicron variant? That's what right-wing commentators have said - "Sage’s Omicron modelling had been an exercise in fear-mongering". Vallance responded 'his job was “not to sugarcoat” reality'.

ICS launch delayed
NHS England officials had indicated that ICSs would now go live on 1 July instead of 1 April. The reason cited is the Parliamentary timetable; equally the bill include giving new powers to the secretary of state over NHS reconfigurations; and removing rules and regulations that enforce the use of competitive procurement in the NHS.

Scientists warn of selling UK devopment centre
John Bell, who has worked in the government’s Covid-19 response, said that the centre might be best sold to a large pharmaceutical company. Senior medical experts say we could lose the ability to do that early phase stuff that told us that you could use the adenovirus to make really good vaccines.

Trust accuses BUPA of 'immoral behaviour'
Royal Surrey Foundation Trust has started legal action against healthcare insurance giant Bupa. The dispute centres around the trust’s brachytherapy service, which treats private as well as NHS patients. the Royal Surrey says Bupa owes it money. Why do we have arrangements with private healthcare in our NHS? It's more efficient to direct all funding to a publicly-run NHS?

Vaccination rules: hospital units may close
Chris Hopson says entire hospital units could be forced to shut because of staff quitting in protest at the government’s order that they must all be vaccinated against Covid-19.

NHS Bill: how it'll destroy the NHS
If you think the NHS is a comprehensive publicly-run health service dedicated to fulfilling patient need, then read what the government's new Act will do, ration care and bring in more not less privatisation.

What is really happening in our hospitals
This winter it will be harder than last year. It isn’t just Covid, though Covid is a factor. The challenge is bigger because of the backlog of care, because of staffing problems and due to people’s difficulties accessing primary care. 

Steep rise in long stay hospital patients
A number of trusts are reporting a rise in the number of patients who could leave hospital but don't have adequate social or domestic care. A number of trusts say more than one in 10 beds during the last week of November were occupied by patients who were medically fit to leave.

How did we end up in this Omicron mess?
Johnson and his cabinet have wasted their time, our money, expert science and the goodwill of both NHS workers and the public. For months we’ve known that vaccine immunity from two doses is unlikely to last very long and that new variants could well challenge that further.

NHS bill: US corporates seize our health service
We all know that the U.S. healthcare system is a thing of nightmares, but now we're creating our own version of it. The Health and Social Care Bill going through parliament converts our once efficient NHS into US-style Accountable Care.

NHS bill: it's really rationing and more privatisation
The government tells us that the bill will support the NHS in tackling its backlog, including by promoting ‘integration’ with social care. But no plausible explanation of how the bill will achieve that is offered. The care system languishes, privatised, means-tested, short-staffed, fragmented, unaccountable and underfunded.

Patient harm 'a continuing theme'
This HSJ piece is behing a paywall but you see enough. Ambulance trusts are as underfunded as others. It tells us of incidents including a cardiac arrest where an ambulance took more than an hour to arrive and the patient died. They cannot prevent patient harm under their current funding levels.

The catastrophic failure of Test and Trace
Our private Test and Trace system has cost £37,000 million so far and it's a disaster. It's failed to prevent further lockdowns, it must now "wean itself off its persistent reliance on consultants" who charge £1000 per day.

46 'VIP' deals awarded before proper due diligence
At least 46 PPE deals were awarded to firms put in a special “VIP lane” by Conservative ministers, MPs and officials during the Covid pandemic before a formal due diligence process was put in place.