NHS services set for ‘impacts’ in face of spending cuts
Mid and South Integrated Care System managers say 'tough choices' are on the way
NHS services in Essex are bracing for ‘impacts’ over warnings money being spent will have to be reduced.
Mid and South Integrated Care System (ICS) is struggling to keep within its £2.5 billion annual budget. The most recent financial figures show that in November 2023 it had a deficit of £60 million.
That is up from £52m in October, £45m in September and £39 in August. Its original deficit plan for 2023/24 was £40.3m. Mid and South ICS covers Basildon, Braintree, Brentwood, Castle Point, Chelmsford, Maldon and Rochford.
The deficit has now been moved to £57 million for December following an agreement with national managers – a contingent that Mid and South Essex ICS can deliver actions to meet that target.
Integrated care systems are a partnership of organisations that plan, buy, and provide health and care services in their geographical area. The organisations involved include the NHS, local authorities, voluntary and charity groups, and independent care providers.
Mid and South Essex ICS managers say the year-to-date position at Mid and South largely reflects the current shortfall in efficiency programme delivery which was set to mitigate the impact of rising risk. However, workforce pressures continue to drive high levels of spend within our provider sector.
Particular funding pressures have come from acute services, continuing care services and prescribing.
Tracy Dowling, Interim Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board warned that meeting budget targets will require “tough choices” and that reducing the money spent “will have impact”.
Speaking at a board meeting on January 19 she said: “We will need to make some really tough choices and we will need to do that very publicly and within our partners in health and local authorities.
“But we are going to have to reduce the amount of money that we spend and that will have impacts and that will have implications and we need to work out what they are and prioritise on the basis of need and effectiveness.”
However, she added working more collaboratively with local authorities will help with savings.
She added: “It is about supporting our workforce and making sure we can deliver on the standards that are rightly expected and making sure our services are safe and we deliver them within the resources we are trusted to be stewards of.
“This is taxpayers money we are overspending and if we are overspending then that means someone else cannot spend as much they need for their population.
“I think there is a real collective commitment to understanding where we are spending every pound that we are spending of the almost £2.5 billion that is given to this system and get a really strong plan on how we deliver those services within the resources available to us.
“But that is going to take some time and so what we are developing is a multi-year plan to first get control of our expenditure and understand what we can deliver over next year but also to understand how we can transform the delivery of our services across all sectors.”