NHS trusts are worried they will have to make critical choices about staffing levels and the services they provide in order to keep running, with energy costs forecast to be up to three times higher than a year ago. Bills for non-household customers, such as hospitals, are not subject to the price cap announced by Ofgem, which rises by 80% in October, and are therefore even more vulnerable to wholesale price rises. The BMJ surveyed NHS trusts in England for details of their recent and projected future energy bills and how they expected to fare in the coming winter, taking into account additional energy charges down the road. Most said they expected their energy bills to at least double. Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, the NHS trust in London, said it expects a combined gas and electricity bill of around £650,000 a month in January and February next year – up from around £350,000 in the same months this year. Sheffield Children’s NHS Trust expects its total energy bill for 2022-23 to be almost 130% higher than in 2021-22, although it may be able to avoid some of the extra costs because it is locked in at current prices with his energy supplier until the end of March 2023. University Hospitals Nottingham NHS Trust said it had forecast a 214% rise in electricity and gas costs for 2022-23. Marcus Pratt, program director for systems funding at NHS Nottingham and Nottinghamshire, said University Hospitals Nottingham NHS Trust had budgeted an increase in annual energy costs of around £27m compared to costs in 2021-2022. Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS estates and facilities director Craige Richardson said the trust expected to pay an extra £2m a month for electricity and gas combined in January and February 2023 compared to the same months this year , an increase of around 110%. In May this year, NHS England estimated that rising energy prices would cost the NHS £485m more in 2022-23 than budgeted when NHS planning guidance was issued last December. It allocated £1.5bn from its existing budget to cover this £485m energy increase plus various other inflationary pressures on the NHS, such as fuel costs for ambulance services, private funding contracts and local authority care prices. However, energy prices have continued to move and are expected to rise further next year. Rory Deighton, senior head of the NHS Confederation, which represents the entire healthcare system in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, said: “This is not an abstract problem as the gap in funding from rising inflation will either have to be covered. increased by fewer staff being employed, longer waiting times for care or other areas of patient care being cut. “The new prime minister needs to supplement this autumn’s budget or any emergency budget he has to cover the deficit. The NHS needs at least £4bn to offset inflation over the course of this year alone, and that’s before we face a winter of even higher wholesale energy prices. “Failure to properly compensate the NHS for inflation will increase the pressure on our health services as we head into what we know will be a particularly demanding winter this year.”
title: “Nhs Leaders Warn Of Service Cuts As Hospital Energy Bills Soar Hospitals Klmat” ShowToc: true date: “2022-11-08” author: “Robert Farley”
NHS trusts are worried they will have to make critical choices about staffing levels and the services they provide in order to keep running, with energy costs forecast to be up to three times higher than a year ago. Bills for non-household customers, such as hospitals, are not subject to the price cap announced by Ofgem, which rises by 80% in October, and are therefore even more vulnerable to wholesale price rises. The BMJ surveyed NHS trusts in England for details of their recent and projected future energy bills and how they expected to fare in the coming winter, taking into account additional energy charges down the road. Most said they expected their energy bills to at least double. Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, the NHS trust in London, said it expects a combined gas and electricity bill of around £650,000 a month in January and February next year – up from around £350,000 in the same months this year. Sheffield Children’s NHS Trust expects its total energy bill for 2022-23 to be almost 130% higher than in 2021-22, although it may be able to avoid some of the extra costs because it is locked in at current prices with his energy supplier until the end of March 2023. University Hospitals Nottingham NHS Trust said it had forecast a 214% rise in electricity and gas costs for 2022-23. Marcus Pratt, program director for systems funding at NHS Nottingham and Nottinghamshire, said University Hospitals Nottingham NHS Trust had budgeted an increase in annual energy costs of around £27m compared to costs in 2021-2022. Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS estates and facilities director Craige Richardson said the trust expected to pay an extra £2m a month for electricity and gas combined in January and February 2023 compared to the same months this year , an increase of around 110%. In May this year, NHS England estimated that rising energy prices would cost the NHS £485m more in 2022-23 than budgeted when NHS planning guidance was issued last December. It allocated £1.5bn from its existing budget to cover this £485m energy increase plus various other inflationary pressures on the NHS, such as fuel costs for ambulance services, private funding contracts and local authority care prices. However, energy prices have continued to move and are expected to rise further next year. Rory Deighton, senior head of the NHS Confederation, which represents the entire healthcare system in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, said: “This is not an abstract problem as the gap in funding from rising inflation will either have to be covered. increased by fewer staff being employed, longer waiting times for care or other areas of patient care being cut. “The new prime minister needs to supplement this autumn’s budget or any emergency budget he has to cover the deficit. The NHS needs at least £4bn to offset inflation over the course of this year alone, and that’s before we face a winter of even higher wholesale energy prices. “Failure to properly compensate the NHS for inflation will increase the pressure on our health services as we head into what we know will be a particularly demanding winter this year.”
