HOSPITAL strikes have now cost the NHS £2billion, bosses reckon.
NHS England’s latest estimate is that it has spent £1billion coping directly with a year’s worth of industrial action — in lost work and wages for shift cover.
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A similar sum has been lost in time that should have been used for tests, scans, treatment and operations.
Junior docs go back on strike from December 20 — with A&E departments facing winter pressures and a Cheshire hospital hit by a vomiting bug.
Dr Emily Lawson, chief operating officer at NHS England, said: “It is the worst possible time of the year for this to happen.
“We’re only in the first week of December and we are already seeing serious winter pressures.
“I’m sure everybody knows somebody who is unwell at the moment and that’s likely to increase.”
Chief exec Amanda Pritchard said the latest strikes were “incredibly disappointing” and “top of everyone’s minds and worry list”.
She added: “While many people are preparing for Christmas celebrations, the NHS is preparing for strikes.
“We absolutely cannot have a winter like last year because that was the worst of my career, and clearly strikes will make this harder.”