Assembly examines London’s health pressure

This meeting took place on 6 March 2014. Read the transcript here.

Can London’s health services cope with future demand on resources?

• Currently, one in eleven people in London is 65 or older, that figure will increase by 19 per cent by 2020.
• The number of people with a long-term condition is estimated at 1.5 million.
• We have the highest rate of sexually transmitted diseases in the country.
• More than 50 per cent of people in the UK with HIV live in London.
• London accounts for almost 40 per cent of tuberculosis cases reported nationally.
• It is estimated that 2.1 million people in London will have experienced mental ill-health during 2013, amounting to £3.3 billion in health and social care costs.

Almost a year ago reforms under the Health and Social Care Act 2012 took effect.

The changes have come at a time when NHS funding is expected to remain flat but demand for healthcare is forecast to grow by four per cent each year. This means that the service is facing a funding gap of £30 billion by 2020.[1]

The London Assembly Health Committee is holding a briefing to determine London’s ability to cope with the provision of current structures within the NHS.

The Committee will question;

• Dr Anne Rainsberry, Regional Director, NHS England (London)
• Ann Radmore, Chief Executive, London Ambulance Service
• Paul Plant, Deputy Director Health Improvement, Public Health England (London)
• Amanda Coyle, Assistant Director of Health and Communities, GLA
• Sam Maugher, Chair, City of London Healthwatch
• Andrew Eyres, Chair, Chief Officers Group Clinical Commissioning Groups

The meeting will take place on Thursday 6th March from 10am in Committee Room 5 at City Hall (The Queen’s Walk, London SE1 2AA).

Media and members of the public are invited to attend.

The meeting can also be viewed via webcast.