The NHS is facing a growing crisis as the Labour government’s promises to tackle osteoporosis and expand fracture liaison services have fallen woefully short. Shadow Health Minister Caroline Johnson has sounded the alarm, warning that Wes Streeting’s “deluge of broken promises is raining down on patient safety like a hailstorm.”
Despite expert advice and assurances, the government has failed to deliver on its pledge to provide respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccinations for the over-80s, putting the elderly at severe risk of illness this winter. Additionally, national plans for cancer, maternity, neonatal care, and the NHS workforce have all been pushed back to 2026.
The Health Secretary had promised that establishing a universal fracture liaison service would be a top priority. These services identify people aged 50 and over who have broken a bone and provide treatment to reduce the risk of future fractures, particularly for those suffering from osteoporosis. However, the data paints a bleak picture.
In the wake of the general election, Labour has opened just three new fracture liaison services, despite many being rolled out under the previous Conservative government. Shockingly, 49% of NHS Trusts in England – one in two – still do not have a fracture liaison service. Furthermore, almost 25% of Integrated Care Boards reported having no such service at all, leaving vulnerable people in these areas unidentified and untreated.
As Caroline Johnson states, “This is, quite literally, an accident waiting to happen – on Labour’s watch.” Wes Streeting had promised universal fracture liaison services by 2030, but at the current glacial pace, it will take until 2055 to achieve this goal – a staggering 29 years from now.
With the risk of falls and fractures increasing as the weather grows colder, the Labour government must urgently “get its act together” and deliver on its promises. Failure to do so will result in unnecessary harm and suffering for thousands of patients across the country.