Budget 2018: what it means for health and social care

The 2018 Budget reiterated the government's promise of £20.5bn in additional funding for NHS England by 2023/24 and also included extra money for social care.

The briefing unpicks what the budget really means for the NHS, social care and other key areas of health spending such as public health and professional training.

• The overall Department of Health and Social Care budget is set to increase by just 2.7% next year – a reduction of £1bn for non-NHS spending such as capital investment, public health, and education and training.
• A further £240m of ‘winter pressures’ money will be provided for adult social care in 2019/20, on top of £240m already announced for 2018/19. This goes only a small way towards plugging the £1.5bn funding gap.