Health and care sector latest developments
‘Groundbreaking’ HIV prevention programme aims to end transmissions by 2030
A new government action plan, backed by £170 million, aims to bring England within reach of ending new HIV transmissions by 2030, the health secretary has announced.
Unveiled by Wes Streeting on World Aids Day on Monday, the comprehensive strategy seeks to re-engage individuals who have disengaged from HIV care and tackle the persistent stigma surrounding the virus.
According to the Independent, a cornerstone of the plan involves the introduction of opt-out HIV testing in A&E departments during routine blood tests.
NHS Confederation responds to BMA announcing reballot for industrial action mandate
Resident doctors in England will strike again this month, with the BMA urging the government to call off the action by resuming talks on jobs and pay.
The BMA resident doctors committee has today confirmed doctors will return to the picket lines in the run-up to Christmas, while urging the government to ‘get a grip on the situation’ by returning to negotiations.
Should it go ahead, the latest round of action will see resident doctors stage full walk-outs from 7am on 17 December until 7am on 22 December.
Rory Deighton, acute and community care director at the NHS Confederation, said:
"This will come as a devastating blow to health leaders who have only just navigated another round of walkouts. With winter now upon us, flu levels surging, and staff sickness expected to rise, pressure on services will be intense.”
Full comment here: NHS Confederation responds to new resident doctor strike dates ahead of Christmas
US and UK agree zero tariffs deal on pharmaceuticals
Tens of thousands of NHS patients will benefit from a landmark medicines trade deal between the UK and the US, which will secure and expand access to vital drugs, safeguard our medicines supply chain, and drive crucial investment while supporting UK patients and industries.
The deal, part of the UK-US Economic Prosperity Deal, sees the UK become the only country in the world to secure a zero percent tariff on pharmaceuticals to the US – protecting UK-based manufacturing and cementing our place as a world leader for life sciences investment. The deal will also secure preferential terms for the UK’s med tech exports meaning no additional new tariffs on med tech to unlock further investments in UK and a further boost to growth.
Medicines also have a key role to play in delivering the government’s three shifts for the NHS, including keeping people out of hospital.
Dr Layla McCay, director of policy at the NHS Confederation called for clarity on how higher drug prices will be paid for in new deal:
"Healthcare leaders know that a thriving health and life sciences sector is key to ensuring that patients can access the treatments and innovations they need, at the best value to the NHS, whilst also supporting economic growth.
"Medicines also have a key role to play in delivering the government’s three shifts for the NHS, including keeping people out of hospital.”
Full comment here: Health leaders call for clarity on how higher drug prices will be paid for in new deal
Health minister says UK should cash in on NHS patient data
The UK should “leverage” its new health data storage service for the “benefit of the Treasury coffers”, a health minister has said, as well as accelerating the discovery of new treatments for NHS patients.
Health and innovation minister Zubir Ahmed said in an interview with the Financial Times that the government’s new Health Data Research Service (HDRS) will give researchers a single access point to national datasets for the first time and unlock “the power” of NHS data. “There is no shame in saying, we have world leading examples of high-quality care and high-quality research, and we should be leveraging that for the benefit of the Treasury coffers, and patients and citizens in this country.”
The idea of a central service that controls and stores NHS data forms part of a wider effort to both improve data flows and capitalise on public information held by the NHS. Experts have warned this may fuel public concern over profiteering from private medical information.
WHO warning over shortage of obesity jabs
Fewer than one in ten people who could benefit from obesity jabs like Wegovy are able to get them, warns the World Health Organization (WHO), external as it releases its first guidance on the drugs.
With more than one billion people worldwide now obese, it is calling for more widespread and fairer access to GLP-1 medication.
According to projections, more than two billion will be obese by 2030 unless action is taken.
High costs, limited production capacity, and supply-chain constraints are major barriers to universal access to the injections that can help people shift significant weight, says WHO.
It has already added them to its 'essential' medicines list, external (for overweight patients with diabetes) that countries are advised to provide.
WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said: "Our new guidance recognises that obesity is a chronic disease that can be treated with comprehensive and lifelong care.”
NHS pays out £15.7 million for botched operations
The NHS paid £15.7 million last year to compensate patients for bungled operations.
According to the Daily Telegraph, there were 125 cases settled in the past year where a foreign item was left inside a person and another 47 where surgeons operated on the wrong part of the body.
The NHS paid £8.7 million worth of damages for these types of cases – known in the medical world as 'never events' on the basis that they should never happen – and spent another £7 million on lawyers’ fees.
Private providers given greater incentives to take on complex work
Changes to the prices paid by the NHS to private providers for ophthalmology work have been delayed and refocused to increase the commercial attractiveness of undertaking more complex treatment.
According to the HSJ, the reforms will now reduce expected expenditure with private providers by £45 million, instead of the £60 million estimate based on the original timetable.
The changes are aimed at addressing an imbalance in the length of waiting lists for ophthalmology services. Waiting times for high volume, low complexity work are much shorter than for treatment for more complex conditions.
Private provider challenges ICB spending curbs
England’s biggest private hospital group has warned it may have to stop some of its NHS work as integrated care boards (ICBs) screw down on spending.
Circle Health Group said that 'where appropriate' it was challenging ICBs that were ceasing or reducing their activity levels 'in the hope that we can delay or even reverse the process'.
However, it added: 'Unfortunately, this will likely now require direct intervention from NHS England and/or the government.'
Significantly reducing or ceasing activity would potentially impact clinical safety and patient outcomes and lead to more complaints, Circle’s chief medical officer Peter James has warned.
The concerns were set out in a letter sent to all its consultants which undertake NHS work for the group. The letter also said the provider was reviewing its cost base as its NHS work reduces.
Sarah Walter, director of the NHS Confederation’s ICS Network, said: “Our ICB members face an unprecedented financial challenge – both across their teams as they restructure, cluster and merge and across their local health economies.
“Private healthcare groups play a role in expanding capacity, helping to shorten waiting lists, and ensuring patients receive timely care. However, refocusing the role of ICBs as strategic commissioners helps ensure that both patients and the public receive the best possible care for every public pound spent, including by tackling waiting lists and maximising patient choice.”
Pathology firm struggling to return tests in time
Patients at a major London teaching trust risk having their care delayed because its pathology services provider is failing to meet agreed standards.
King’s College Hospital Foundation Trust said turnaround times for histopathology tests carried out by Synnovis had fallen below expected standards and that immediate action was needed to the 'time-critical' care needs of some patients.
Synnovis is 51 per cent owned by pathology firm Synlab and 49 per cent by Guy’s and St Thomas’ FT and King’s.
Trust quits procurement partnership over price hike
A high-profile specialist trust has left a procurement partnership formed with other NHS providers after it was asked to pay an extra £300,000 to remain a member.
According to the HSJ, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children Foundation Trust (GOSH) confirmed it has decided to leave the SmartTogether procurement partnership from the beginning of the next financial year.
A revised charging model had resulted in partner trusts being asked to pay around £300,000 more per year.
NHS England threatens to remove trust’s directors unless its performance improves
Lancashire Teaching Hospitals Foundation Trust (LTHFT) has been told to improve its financial performance or risk having its directors replaced by NHS England.
The move comes despite an internal report claiming that the trust is now in a good position 'to overcome a period of difficulty'.
LTHFT has been subject to enforcement actions by NHS England since 2018, largely as a result of its poor financial performance.
The actions the trust has been required to take have been altered over the years, with the latest changes made in July 2024 and March 2025 requiring the trust to improve compliance with its financial plan. However, NHS England now appears to have run out of patience with the trust.
