HEALTH

• NHS was set up in 1945. It aimed to eradicate the Giant of Disease by offering healthcare to all, having three aims; universal access, treating all medical problems, and being free at the point of use.
• Medical care was to be based on need, not a person's money or background. It also offered helpful services to Britain's public such as childcare, the introduction of prescriptions, health visiting, and provision for the elderly, providing a safety net across the whole country.
• ANALYSIS (FOR)

  • NHS was the first comprehensive system of health in Britain. It offered vaccination and immunisation against disease, almost totally eradicating some of Britain's most deadly illnesses.
• ANALYSIS (AGAINST)

  • Many hospitals were out of date and in poor condition. This limited the effectiveness of the treatments that people received from the NHS.
  • Costs of running the NHS were very high. In 1951, Labour voted to introduce prescription changes, which then happened in 1952. Some government ministers resigned in protest at this decision.
• EVALUATION

  The Labour reforms helped disease the most because introducing the NHS meant that everyone in Britain could now get free healthcare. Before this more than half of the British population had no medical cover, meaning they often went without treatment.