The Rt. Hon Theresa May MP
The Prime Minister
10 Downing Street
SW1A 2AA聽
25 October 2018聽
Dear Prime Minister聽
We have warmly welcomed your strong leadership on mental health. You have rightly committed to tackling the 鈥渂urning injustice of mental illness鈥 by delivering 鈥渁 new approach from government and society as a whole鈥 to achieve parity of esteem and outcomes. And, thanks to your leadership, we have undoubtedly already made progress towards this goal.聽
Mental health services have seen significant progress in access and quality, as a result of the Five Year Forward View for Mental Health and its investment. This is a huge achievement. However, this plan was only ever intended to take the first, realistic steps on a journey towards parity, focussing on crucial, but specialist, areas of support for certain groups of people living with mental illness.聽
We hear far too often from people experiencing mental health problems who are having to wait months, sometimes years, for treatment. This, alongside a lack of sufficient prevention and social care services, mean too many people are reaching crisis point, resulting in lifelong harm to their quality of life, not to mention impacting on NHS and wider public finances.聽
One person severely impacted by mental illness told us: 鈥淢y problems were not taken seriously and I ended up as an inpatient last year which would have been completely avoidable with appropriate community support. I often feel completely alone with my illness, despite the fact that on paper it looks like I have support because I am under the care of the community mental health team. I thought that I was going to be dead before I got to the top of the waiting list...鈥澛
Today the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR), supported by Rethink Mental Illness, has published a report which 鈥 for the first time 鈥 highlights how much true parity of esteem for mental health would cost the NHS. By comparing access and quality of mental health care to physical health this report finds that to guarantee parity of esteem, mental health spending must double to 拢23.9bn by 2030/31, alongside uplifts in public health and social care budgets.聽
In light of the welcome extra funding for the NHS, now is the time to translate your commitments into ambitious and bold action. NHS mental health services require an increase in spending of at least 5% each year up to 2023/24 and 5.5% by 2030/31 to achieve parity of esteem compared to your committed increase for the NHS of 3.4% by 2023.聽
Only with this investment will people living with mental health conditions truly receive the care and support they need to have an equal chance of a long and fulfilling life as those with a physical health condition.聽
Yours sincerely,聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽
Andrew Reeves, Chair,聽香港六合彩精准资料
Kathy Roberts, CEO,聽
Sarb Bajwa, CEO,聽
Sarah Hughes, CEO,聽
Tom Kibasi, Director,聽
Paul Farmer, CEO,聽
Sean Duggan, CEO,聽
Mark Rowland, CEO,聽
Helen Undy, Director,聽
Lynne Stubbings, Chair,聽
Mark Winstanley, CEO,
Wendy Burns, President,聽
Ruth Sutherland, CEO,聽
Lynda Bryant, CEO,聽
Emma Thomas, CEO,聽