Overview

• Prime Minister Keir Starmer has not guaranteed protection for GP surgeries and hospices from increased national insurance costs.
• The Budget's rise in employer NICs will not affect the NHS but will impact independent health providers and charities.
• Health Secretary Wes Streeting is reviewing funding allocations and promises an announcement before Christmas.
• Hospice UK warns that one in five hospices may cut services due to the financial strain, with a £60m deficit looming.
• Sixty MPs have urged the government to provide emergency funding to support the struggling hospice sector.