Nuffield Trust response to Lib Dem A&E policy announcements

Responding to new policies on A&E and social care announced by the Liberal Democrats, Nuffield Trust Chief Executive, Thea Stein said:

“Dangerously long waits in A&E have become all too common since the pandemic, so addressing this clearly needs to be a priority for the NHS. The Liberal Democrats are right to highlight the systemic issues driving these long waits, including insufficient hospital bed and social care capacity.

“However, the suggestion of adding a new target to the NHS Constitution to end 12-hour waits should be met with some caution, as the NHS is long past the point where simply putting something in the Constitution means it can be meaningfully prioritised and achieved. Having targets that cannot be met can be distracting, demoralising, and encourages unhelpful behaviours for moving patients on through the system. The NHS in England has never delivered all eleven of the targets listed as pledges to patients in its Constitution handbook at once.

“These announcements bring much-needed attention to social care with funding commitments and a recognition of the need for better support for carers, as well as improving the organisation of medications when patients are discharged from hospital. But a focus on discharge alone would be short-sighted and addresses the symptom but not the cause. Extra money would be better invested more generally into strengthening social care that supports people at home.

“The Liberal Democrats are right to note the amount of money needed to cover the government’s concessions to the USA, after pressure on the UK to pay more for new branded medicines. As the government has not provided additional funding to cover higher medicines prices, money will need to be diverted away from better value NHS care, such as A&E services. However, even if the unfunded pharmaceutical deal was undone, the Liberal Democrats would still need to find a funding source for their commitments to avoid cutting existing services.”