So the referendum is over and the UK, or at least England and Wales, will likely be out of the European Union. Most economics forecasters are predicting a period of financial uncertainty and this will likely impact on the NHS both directly in terms of funding but also through the effect on other public services.
At a time when the NHS is facing its biggest funding crisis, public sector spending looks likely to be squeezed at best and face huge cuts at worst. The “protection” of health funding by the government may have been mostly smoke and mirrors - ie it was cut but just not as drastically as other public services. But now even this slight protection may disappear.
But the most immediate issue is probably for the 60,000 NHS staff and at least 40,000 care workers who come from the EU, who face a worrying and unsettling time.
