Health
Health
As a country one of the things we can be proudest of as a nation is the NHS. A healthcare service free at the point of use. We want to make sure those who work hard for the NHS are rewarded, so we will be giving nurses a pay rise in real terms. We also want to make sure that mental health is given equal priority to physical health which is why we will be increasing funding for this area. Above all else though, we want to make the NHS is there for you whenever you need it, which is why we are committed to a seven day NHS, so hard working families no longer have to wait until the working week arrives before seeing a consultant.
Our Commitment
The Conservative Party would like to once again reaffirm our commitment to an NHS that is free at the point of use and properly funded. We will increase spending on healthcare in line with inflation to ensure that A&E department waiting times are kept as low as possible and expensive cancer drugs can still be afforded. We will increase nurses pay by 1% a year to make the job more attractive to prospective students.
NHS Funding
A Conservative Government would increase the overall spending of the National Health Service by 8 billion pounds a year. We must make sure the health of our society is the world's best ; and investing into it is the best way to insure that we maintain the high quality care. Whilst a Conservative Government will be pressuring the NHS to reduce waste, that doesn't mean we do not recognise the threats of being overstrained, and will make sure it gets the funding it deserves. The NHS will always remain free-at-the-point-of-use.
Seven day NHS
We pledge a full 7 day National Health Service. No longer will patients on wards will have to wait till the working week to see a consultant to receive care. We will make sure consultants are available in every hospital and local clinics across the whole United Kingdom.
Cancer Research
Current cancer research is underfunded and not understood enough. A Conservative government would introduce a fund specifically for cancer research and treatment, and if successful would expand this to other ailments.
Health Tourism
In order to combat health tourism, we will ensure that people visiting the UK have travel insurance. On top of this, for non-emergency care, immigrants will have to either pay for NHS services or have health insurance for their first four years living in the country.
Cutting Bureaucracy
We will continue to slash wasteful bureaucracy within the NHS. This will be done by integrating IT into the NHS, saving paper. It will be done by evaluating the purpose of jobs within the NHS and whether or not they are adequate for the taxpayer. We will always keep the NHS well funded, however it cannot be wasteful.
Mental Health
Mental Health is an area which is sadly often overlooked and we will seek to change that by increasing funding for treatments centres and campaigning to end the stigma that so many people face everyday. The Conservatives will also build specialist centres for the most severe cases that require specialist care and rehabilitation for patients.
