Conservative leader David Cameron has said the NHS will be his “number one priority”, as the main parties step up their pre-election campaigning.
Unveiling the first part of a draft manifesto, he focused on three health issues - NHS reform, health inequalities and maternity services - and accused the government of top-down management.
On reform, he committed to giving the NHS “back to the people”. Cameron said: “It’s the patients who’ll have the power in our NHS. You’ll be able to check your health records online in the same way you do your bank account.
“You’ll have a real choice about where you get treated. You’ll have information about how good different doctors are, how good different hospitals are, information about things that really matter, like survival rates, the rate of hospital infections, your chances of going home to live independently if you have a stroke.”
He attacked the government over ongoing health inequalities saying they’re as bad today as they were in “Victorian times”. Cameron outlined the introduction of a health premium, which would “target resources on the poorest areas so we can banish health inequalities to history. With our plans, the poorer the area, the worse the health outcomes tend to be, so the more money they can get.”
He said how this additional money would be spent would be determined locally by local councils and directors of public health.
Cameron also unveiled a new approach to maternity services. He accused the government of creating “bigger and bigger baby factories” that were remote to patients.
The Conservatives will introduce maternity networks in which “local hospitals, GPs, charities, community groups and maternity consultants will all be linked up so that they can share information, expertise and services.”
He said: “Parents in many parts of Europe have a system that is more personal and more local - with more choice. And they also have lower rates of infant mortality. Why can’t our parents have the same?”
The Conservatives claimed to be the only party committed to protecting NHS spending.
Labour, meanwhile, released a document which they said showed a £34bn gap in Tory spending plans - a claim which Cameron later described as “junk”.
Responding to the manifesto, Anna Dixon, acting chief executive of the King’s Fund, said: “Whichever party forms a government after the next election, they will inherit an NHS facing the toughest financial challenge in its history. Whether or not current spending is protected, demand will continue to rise and the NHS needs to figure out how to do more for less without compromising safety or quality.”
Read an at-a-glance guide to the manifesto.
Read the full speech.
Tags: Health inequality, Maternity, Patient choice
