The Health Foundation podcast

The Labour government has embarked on a reorganisation of the NHS in England. And now the Health Bill (also known as the ‘NHS Modernisation Bill’) has been introduced in parliament to effect the changes.  Key provisions include merging NHS England into the Department of Health and Social Care, reforming data sharing to support creating a single patient record and shaking up patient voice functions...

Artificial intelligence is developing at breakneck speed, leaving governments around the world scrambling to respond. For a high-risk area like health care, safe, responsible use will be critical. But pressures on health systems mean governments can ill afford to delay adoption. So what's the right balance? And how can we ensure AI tools work in real-life health care settings and minimise unintend...

In 1997, the New Labour government set up the social exclusion unit in the Cabinet Office. It was tasked with tackling what Tony Blair called ‘joined-up problems’ – social challenges like homelessness, school absence and exclusion, drug use and teenage pregnancy, which often have complex and interlocking causes. Analysis suggests many of the initiatives that followed had real positive impacts. So...

Surveys show rock solid public support for the basic principles of the NHS – universal, free at the point of use and mainly tax funded. Yet given widespread public dissatisfaction with the status quo, and non-traditional challenger parties gaining ground in the polls, can we take consensus on the NHS model for granted? In our second conversation exploring big trends in UK public opinion, we ask wh...

Surveys show rock solid public support for the basic principles of the NHS – universal, free at the point of use and mainly tax-funded. Yet given widespread public dissatisfaction with the status quo, and non-traditional challenger parties gaining ground in the polls, can we take consensus on the NHS model for granted? In the first of two episodes, we explore big trends in UK public opinion and as...

The year saw the arrival of the long-awaited 10-Year Health Plan – a dizzying array of proposals spanning NHS structures, services, staffing and more. Government missions were downgraded; another review of social care was announced; and further hopes pinned on the transformative potential of tech.  But how is progress overall? Is the government’s rhetoric on reform matching reality? And what shoul...

How can AI be implemented safely and effectively? We look to the US for clues.  AI is going to have a huge impact on health and care. In England, the government’s 10-Year Health Plan aims to make the NHS ‘the most AI-enabled care system in the world’. But with AI innovations coming thick and fast, and the health technology market awash with unproven tools, how can implementation be done responsibl...

We've seen real progress in cancer care in the UK: survival rates have doubled since the 1970s and death rates have fallen by around a fifth. But cancer still causes around 25% of all deaths today – and services are facing big challenges. Cancer survival in the UK lags other similar health systems, the rate of improvement in survival has slowed, and cancer cases are set to rise substantially over...

In our third conversation with former health secretaries, we speak to Sajid Javid about the future of the NHS and its long-term funding model. Sajid was Secretary of State for Health and Social Care from 2021 to 2022, before resigning from the Johnson government. He previously served in several cabinet positions, including as Home Secretary and Chancellor. He stepped down as an MP in 2024. In conv...

Is the government’s 10-Year Health Plan the medicine the NHS needs? We ask two former health secretaries.  In the second of two special episodes, we speak to Alan Milburn about the future of the NHS and his thoughts on the government’s 10-Year Health Plan. Alan was Secretary of State for Health from 1999 to 2003, during the Blair governments, with his tenure seeing the development of the NHS Plan...

Is the government’s 10-Year Health Plan the medicine the NHS needs? We ask two former health secretaries. In the first of two special episodes, we speak to Jeremy Hunt about the state of the NHS and his reaction to the government’s 10-Year Health Plan. Jeremy was Secretary of State for Health and Social Care between 2012 and 2018, in the Cameron and May governments, making him the longest serving...

Our surroundings play a big role in shaping our health. And some neighbourhoods – including so-called ‘left behind areas’ – can be tough places to live, with limited economic opportunity, low levels of social mobility and social capital, and poorer health. All this contributes to people in the most deprived areas on average living 19 fewer years in good health than people in the least deprived.  T...

8.2 million working-age people report having a long-term health condition that limits their ability to work. 1.7 million say that work itself is making them ill or creating challenges. In addition to causing personal hardships, this decline in working-age health is causing concern among employers, politicians and policymakers.  With the benefits bill rising, government has set its sights on wide-r...

‘Today we are abolishing the biggest quango in the world,’ – Wes Streeting, 13 March 2025   Many people were surprised by the government’s decision to abolish NHS England and fold its functions into the Department of Health and Social Care. Not least Richard Meddings, Chair of NHS England since 2022. Having formally completed his term in March, Richard joins our Chief Executive Jennifer Dixon to d...

It’s 2 years since Keir Starmer first set out his five missions for government, including a health mission to build ‘an NHS fit for the future’ and ‘a fairer Britain, where everyone lives well for longer’. Missions were supposed to mean a new way of doing government – focused on ambitious, long-term objectives that provide a driving sense of purpose for the country. So, with Labour now in office f...

There are around 350,000 synthetic chemicals in use today and only a small fraction have been robustly tested for their long-term effects on our health. Many of these are used in manufacturing plastics and microplastics – the production of which has doubled since 2008 and is projected to triple by 2060.  Unknowns remain, but research is suggesting pervasive exposures to these manufactured substanc...

There’s been no shortage of NHS plans over the years – what needs to be different this time? Health and care services are facing acute pressures and the NHS tops the public’s list of priorities. The government has pledged to ‘reimagine’ the NHS via a 10-year plan, expected in the spring.  The pressure is now on to develop a credible reform plan. It will need to address the huge challenges of chang...

We look back at our pick of the pod from 2024 .  As 2024 draws to a close, what to make of the year’s developments in health and care?   As yet, a murky picture on NHS reform and on how the new Labour government’s five missions will work in practice; a pressing need to improve the health of the working-age population; and some promising ways forward for technology to improve care, quality and prod...

Health secretary Wes Streeting has set out three big shifts the NHS must deliver – including moving from analogue to digital. National strategy on health technology and digital is developing at pace, with a 10-Year Plan for the NHS expected to set out new priorities in the spring. We’ve seen no shortage of initiatives, roadmaps and plans for tech and innovation in recent years – yet delivery has o...

The UK is becoming more ethnically diverse: nearly 20% of the population reports being from a minority ethnic background and projections suggest growing diversity is the future. People from minority backgrounds in the UK experience a variety of inequalities. But what is the latest evidence telling us?   A comprehensive analysis of race and ethnicity, recently published as part of The IFS Deaton Re...

Since the early 1990s, there’s been a concerning uptick in cancer incidence among adults younger than 50 years. Scientists are racing to understand what’s driving these trends. Some evidence points to roles for established risk factors – including smoking and obesity. But some research is also exploring environmental exposures – such as microplastics and forever chemicals – and asking if these cou...

There’s a new Prime Minister in Downing Street and a new political reality in the UK. But what does it all mean for health and care? The incoming government faces a range of complex policy challenges – many of them linked to health and care – and a daunting fiscal inheritance.  While the public might show patience for a few months, they will expect to see some results quickly – and health is a top...

As the general election approaches, what are the main parties planning on health and will it make a difference? Polling day is rapidly approaching and all the main party manifestos have now been published. But when it comes to health and care, do we know what we’re voting for? Many commentators have expressed deep frustration at the opacity of the political debate – not just about the state we are...

More long-term, mission-led policymaking is sorely needed, but how best to do it? The Sure Start programme was set up with the aim of giving young children the best possible start in life, narrowing gaps in outcomes for disadvantaged children. First announced by the New Labour government in 1998, it has evolved regularly over the past two decades. Recent evaluations have found early versions of Su...

Improving NHS productivity is a key national priority. But what’s behind the slowdown and can it be reversed?  Over the past few years, amid the turmoil of COVID-19, the NHS has seen substantial growth in funding and clinical staffing levels. Yet the numbers of patients treated haven’t risen in step – suggesting services, particularly NHS acute hospitals, have become less productive.  Government h...