Thursday 12 March 2020

Responding to the evidence on inequalities in health

Responding to the evidence on inequalities in health In early January I highlighted three things related to the public’s health coming in the next three to six months. Two of those are now here: the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Longevity’s report, The health of the nation: a strategy for healthier longer lives, which covers what the government needs to do to meet its own ambition of an extra five years of healthy life for every individual by 2035 plus narrowing inequalities; and Health equity in England: the Marmot review 10 years on, an assessment of progress on health inequalities and the wider determinants of health 10 years after Fair society, healthy lives. The King's Fund

NHS and Google act to ensure that health information can be trusted

NHS and Google act to ensure that health information can be trusted he NHS today unveiled new developments in its efforts to ensure people find trusted information online. It has worked with Google to ensure it provides the public in the UK with easy access to NHS information about more than 250 of the most searched for health conditions on the NHS website, through new Knowledge Panels. NHS Digital

Summary of Budget 2020: Key points at-a-glance

Summary of Budget 2020: Key points at-a-glance Chancellor Rishi Sunak has delivered his first Budget in the House of Commons, announcing the government's tax and spending plans for the year ahead.

Here is a summary of the main points. BBC News

See also:

Coronavirus: UK expected to move to 'delay' phase of outbreak

Coronavirus: UK expected to move to 'delay' phase of outbreak The government is expected to announce that it is stepping up its response to the coronavirus.

It is anticipated the UK will switch to tactics aimed at delaying its spread, rather than containing it, when the government's emergency committee meets.

It comes after the World Health Organization labelled the outbreak of the disease as a pandemic.

Schools, colleges and other public facilities in the Republic of Ireland are to close until 29 March.

Overnight, Donald Trump suspended travel to the US from 26 European countries - but not the UK or Ireland. BBC News

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'My anti-depressant withdrawal was worse than depression'

'My anti-depressant withdrawal was worse than depression' The mental health charity Mind says it is signposting people to street drug charities to help them withdraw from antidepressants because of the lack of alternatives available. Those affected can experience debilitating symptoms. BBC News

Budget Confirms EU Migrants Face New £620 Fee To Use NHS

Budget Confirms EU Migrants Face New £620 Fee To Use NHS A family of four from the EU migrating to the UK will face a new £2,200-a-year fee to use the NHS, the Budget has confirmed.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced an extra £6bn for the NHS, but buried news that the government plans to hike up the immigration health surcharge.

The levy is added to visa applications as an annual fee for UK healthcare. Huffington Post UK

'Thank God I said something': the beauticians who spot domestic abuse

'Thank God I said something': the beauticians who spot domestic abuse A Brazilian scheme is teaching salon workers to help identify at-risk women. And a similar scheme is now being trialled in the UK

Ivone Vera, 35, sits in a small room in a beauty salon in Campo Grande, Brazil, where she spends her days waxing clients. It’s an intimate space with a bed, a table in the corner, bare walls and no windows. Within the privacy of these four walls, over the last three years she has heard countless stories of women’s abuse at the hands of their male partners.

“What I hear in this room really affects me and sometimes I don’t know what I can do. There are times I lie awake at night, not able to go to sleep thinking about what I’ve heard,” she says. The Guardian

Chronic migraine sufferers to get first new drug in 20 years 

Chronic migraine sufferers to get first new drug in 20 years Thousands of NHS patients will benefit from the first new treatment for migraines in 20 years.

A drug that can be self-injected at home will benefit 10,000 people who have chronic migraines, drugs watchdog NICE announced.

The medication, which is called Fremanezumab, was developed by British scientists over three decades. The Daily Mail