The Observer view on NHS funding | editorial

The NHS is still one of the best healthcare systems in the world. Mrs May’s apologies to patients are not enough – she must allocate them more money

Five years ago, Britain’s best-loved institutions were at the centre of Danny Boyle’s Olympic opening ceremony. The NHS took pride of place alongside James Bond, the Queen and EastEnders: as the rest of the world watched with bemusement, the stadium in Stratford was transformed into a 1950s-style hospital in a celebration of the state-funded health service the nation holds so dear.

We have to go back 70 years to the pre-NHS world to understand why the public regards the health service not just as an everyday medical reality but as a cherished national institution. Before 1948, getting sick for many meant not just the pain and worry of illness but the knowledge that their lack of means meant treatable conditions could prove terminal.

The Observer is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper, founded in 1791. It is published by Guardian News & Media and is editorially independent.

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Two-thirds of the public are willing to pay more taxes to maintain the level of spending needed on the health service

Continue reading... January 07, 2018 at 05:35AM