No doubt we are at a tipping point for the future of healthcare in the UK
You will hear a lot of misinformation, disinformation, and barefaced lies over the next 18 months – a £200bn/yr industry is on the table.
So here are the facts…
Has the NHS been value for money?
Here is the funding in relation to GDP (a measure for the wealth of a country):
You can see how far off our comparative nations we have been for decades.
This can be seen in number of measures, such as doctors per head of person:
France has 10 per cent more doctors (enough to get on top of our waiting lists).
Germany has 50 per cent more.
So, underfunded and understaffed, we would expect the U.K. to have worse outcomes.
Here is the data on Breast Cancer survival rates:
Our performance is similar to Germany’s and Switzerland’s.
Even in the overall preventable deaths category (⬇️), the UK’s outcomes are similar to those of Germany and New Zealand.
(Sadly, the UK’s avoidable deaths have increased since 2016)
You will note the three worst performers include a tax-based system (UK), one social insurance system (Germany), and a private insurance system (USA).
The argument for changing the healthcare model is nonsensical.
Here is how much of health costs are state versus private:
You will note that all other models spend significantly more through the state than the U.K., and the proportion of state versus out of pocket expense is about similar.
There is no cost advantage in changing systems, at all.
We have used the figures from 2018 (or nearest). This is prior to the mass pillaging of the NHS funds. Bear in mind that all budgets since 2020 are contaminated by the fact all Covid contracts awarded to private providers were included in the NHS budget – PPE, Tests, T&T, etc…
All analyses have identified underfunding as the cause for at least 0.5m being unable to work, 500 deaths per week, 7.5m on the waiting lists, etc…
The only people calling for a change in the NHS model are those who seek to profit from it. They don’t care about patient care.
Yes, we are not performing as the 6th richest economy should. Some of our outcomes could be better. But no comparable country’s health system is as efficient as the NHS.
Look what the NHS has achieved on well below average funding, imagine what we could achieve if properly funded.
It pains me to have to point out these easily discoverable and uncontested facts, but this is the age we live in – where truth is optional in the struggle for more money and power.
So be careful… changing our model of healthcare may not affect you and your family now, but it will.
For more articles by Dr Dan Goyal, please click here.
