More than £8 million of cuts to health and social care services in the capital have today been approved by the Edinburgh Integration Joint Board (EIJB).
The cuts comprise just one phase of a larger savings program in which £15.9 million will be slashed from health and care services.
At a meeting today members of the board, a council and NHS partnership that manages health services in the city, confirmed that the cuts will have a significant negative impact on Edinburgh’s most vulnerable residents.
Going in to 2020/21, EIJB projected costs outweighed allocated health and care budgets by £21.9 million.
With £6 million already covered from additional cost mitigating actions elsewhere, over the past 10 months EIJB officials have developed a four-phased Savings and Recovery Programme to make up the remaining £15.9 million of savings.
Phase zero, which was approved prior to this month, involved £2.96 million of cuts to learning disability services, set aside budgets, external housing support, day centres, vacancy freezes and adult sensory impairment services.
Phase one cuts, which were approved at today’s EIJB meeting, include:
- £1 million from Home First, a scheme providing care support for people from their own homes rather than hospitals.
- £4.10 million from the board’s purchasing budget, which funds packages of care and payments that will help people in need of care to live independently.
- £60,000 from further learning disability services.
- £1.45 million from carers investment.
- £250,000 from community equipment.
- £1.96 million from prescribing activities.
- £50,000 from sexual health services, pending a review of how efficiencies can be made.
- £80,000 from rehabilitation services, pending a review of how efficiencies can be made.
Phases two and three of the savings programme are still undergoing review and will be put to the board at a later date.
As things stand, phase two will include a £100,000 cut to the Edinburgh Alcohol and Drug Partnership, an organisation that works to reduce drug and alcohol related issues in the city.
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It will also include a £300,000 cut to mental health services and £500,000 cut to care home provisions.
At today’s meeting board members said that savings have been necessary due to insufficient funding from the Scottish Government.
Members also clarified that they are upset about the need to make cuts, however they have been left with no choice but to do so.
The EIJB has been contacted for comment.
