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Milburn pledges millions for NHS
ePolitix
Alan Milburn, the health secretary, has announced a multi-million pound package of investment to target cancer and coronary heart disease. Setting out how he will spend the NHS's allocation, he vowed that "the lottery in patient care must come to an end".
The health secretary pledged £450 million for cancer and coronary treatment saying the UK death rates were too high. One of the measures to cut the death rate he said that by 2002 three out of four heart attack victims will receive life-saving drugs within 30 minutes.
As expected, the health secretary announced £130 million for the regional problems faced by the NHS. Milburn said that the lifespan of a boy born in Manchester is six and a half years less than that of a boy born in East Surrey. He said the money, for areas including Bury, Dudley and Newcastle, would "close the gap between the poorest off and the best off".
Milburn said a £100 million performance fund would be set up to reward performance. He said the service "has to move from a position of bailing out failure to where it rewards success. We will no longer tolerate second rate services in parts of the NHS."
Tackling waiting lists, he said that by 2002 no-one would be waiting for an out-patients appointment. Currently there are 126,000 people who have been waiting 26 weeks.
He addressed the recruitment problem in the south east and London promising wage rises for London and counties including Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire. An extra 20 000 nurses and therapists would be recruited to tackle staff shortages. He concluded: "This government is committed to NHS to its overhaul and modernisation."
Tory health spokesman Dr Liam Fox welcomed the statement but said "there is not a great deal that is new in what the secretary of state has announced. Much of it is re-announcements but we have got used to that over time. The secretary of state promises much that has been promised before. When the government makes improvements we will welcome them. Setting targets for 2008 is a far cry from 24 hours to save the NHS."
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