Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to tackle health disparities amongst people who lived in the most deprived areas of the UK.

The Government is committed to increasing the amount of time people spend in good health and to preventing premature deaths, with a vision of ensuring that all individuals, regardless of background or location, live longer, healthier lives. 

Our 10-Year Health Plan for the National Health Service in England sets out a reimagined service designed to tackle inequalities in both access and outcomes, as well as to give everyone, no matter who they are or where they come from, the means to engage with it on their own terms.

For example, we know that the Carr-Hill formula is considered outdated, and evidence suggests that general practitioners (GPs) serving in deprived parts of England receive on average 9.8% less funding per needs-adjusted patient than those in less deprived communities, despite having greater health needs and significantly higher patient-to-GP ratios. This is why we are currently reviewing the formula to ensure that resources are targeted where they are most needed.

Additionally, much of what determines health and wellbeing is influenced by factors other than health services. As a result, we are taking bold action across Government on the social determinants of health to build a fairer Britain. Recent cross-Government action has included the introduction of Awaab’s Law and reform of the Decent Homes Standard for the social and private rented sector, the English Devolution Bill, and a new statutory health and heath inequalities duty for Strategic Authorities.