UK May Face Humanitarian Crisis Due To Rising Prices - Health Service

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 19th August, 2022) The United Kingdom could face a humanitarian crisis as people have to choose between meals and heating homes amid rising prices, the National Health Service (NHS) Confederation said on Friday.

"The country is facing a humanitarian crisis. Many people could face the awful choice between skipping meals to heat their homes and having to live in cold, damp, and very unpleasant conditions. This in turn could lead to outbreaks of illness and sickness around the country and widen health inequalities, worsen children's life chances and leave an indelible scar on local communities," the head of the NHS Confederation, Matthew Taylor, said in a statement.

This situation is caused by rising energy prices, the statement said, adding that the UK is already seeing a rise in disease and worsening health.

In this regard, the NHS Confederation, on behalf of NHS leaders across the country, wrote a letter to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Nadhim Zahawi, urging the government to limit price increases and provide support to people and families in need.

"These outbreaks will strike just as the NHS is likely to experience the most difficult winter on record. NHS leaders have made this unprecedented intervention as they know that fuel poverty will inevitably lead to significant extra demand on what are already very fragile services," Taylor added.

According to the statement, the NHS is concerned that widespread fuel poverty will increase the already high number of annual deaths associated with cold homes.

The UK Office for National Statistics said that the annual inflation rose to a new 40-year high of 10,1% in July from 9.4% in June.