National Health Service
[2] The original three systems were established in 1948 (NHS Wales/GIG Cymru was founded in 1969) as part of major social reforms following the Second World War.
[13] Calls for a "unified medical service" can be dated back to the Minority Report of the Royal Commission on the Poor Law in 1909.
[18] When Clement Attlee's Labour Party won the 1945 election he appointed Aneurin Bevan as Health Minister.
Although being freely accessible regardless of wealth maintained Henry Willink's principle of free healthcare for all, Conservative MPs were in favour of maintaining local administration of the NHS through existing arrangements with local authorities fearing that an NHS which owned hospitals on a national scale would lose the personal relationship between doctor and patient.
[30] From its earliest days, the cultural history of the NHS has shown its place in British society reflected and debated in film, TV, cartoons and literature.
The NHS had a prominent slot during the 2012 London Summer Olympics opening ceremony directed by Danny Boyle, being described as "the institution which more than any other unites our nation".
[5] People who are not ordinarily resident (including British citizens who may have paid National Insurance contributions in the past) may have to pay for services, with some exceptions such as refugees.
[36] Citizens of the EU or European Economic Area (EEA) nations holding a valid European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) and people from certain other countries with which the UK has reciprocal arrangements concerning health care can get NHS emergency treatment without charge.
[40] In 2024, the charges were £776 per year for students, their dependents, those on Youth Mobility Schemes, and those under aged 18, and £1035 for all other applicants who are not covered by exemptions.
In July 2022, The Telegraph reported that think tank Civitas found that health spending was costing about £10,000 per household in the UK.
They said that this was the third highest share of GDP of any nation in Europe and claimed that the UK "has one of the most costly health systems – and some of the worst outcomes".
Civitas said that "runaway" health spending in the UK had increased by more than any country despite the drop in national income due to the COVID pandemic.
"[53] In June 2018, the Royal College of Physicians calculated that medical training places need to be increased from 7,500 to 15,000 by 2030 to take account of part-time working among other factors.
[citation needed] In June 2023, the delayed NHS Long Term Workforce Plan was announced, to train doctors and nurses and create new roles within the health service.
[58] The Welsh and UK governments announced a partnership on 23 September 2024 to reduce NHS waiting lists in England and Wales during the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool.
[60] The National Audit Office found mental health provisions for children and young people will not meet growing demand, despite promises of increased funding.
"[62] In 2024, some NHS hospitals required radiographers to ask all male patients aged 12 to 55 if they were pregnant for inclusivity purposes.
[63][64][65][66] Performance of the NHS is generally assessed separately at the level of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
[73] The Office for National Statistics reported in January 2019 that productivity in the English NHS had been growing at 3%, considerably faster than across the rest of the UK economy.
[74] In 2019, The Times, commenting on a study in the British Medical Journal, reported that "Britain spent the least on health, £3,000 per person, compared with an average of £4,400, and had the highest number of deaths that might have been prevented with prompt treatment".
The BMJ study compared "the healthcare systems of other developed countries in spending, staff numbers and avoidable deaths".
[78] Overall satisfaction with the NHS in 2021 fell, more sharply in Scotland than in England, 17 points to 36% – the lowest level since 1997 according to the British Social Attitudes Survey.
[81] Two thirds of respondents to a King's Fund poll, reported in September 2017, favoured increased taxation to help finance the NHS.
[85] The NHS is consistently ranked as the institution that makes people proudest to be British, beating the royal family, Armed Forces and the BBC.
In a handwritten note the Queen said the award was being made to all NHS staff past and present for their "courage, compassion and dedication" throughout the pandemic.
[97] In October 2022, as part of their efforts to tackle mental health challenges made worse by the pandemic, the NHS partnered with Israeli tech company Taliaz, stating that their AI-powered software translates complex genetic, demographic and clinical patient data into timesaving and cost-saving assessment, management and prescribing support tools for healthcare providers.
[102] A 2024 report by the public research university Imperial College London said that the NHS spends £14.7bn a year treating patients in England hurt by care mistakes.
