Hospital closures are inevitable, many believe

Politicians are “not being open and honest” about the issue of hospital closures, a coalition of charities and patient groups says.

Jeremy Taylor, head of National Voices, said the parties were happy to talk about the need for savings and moving care into the community.

But he said they were “shying away” from the flip-side – services closing and even whole hospitals shutting down.

All the main parties claimed they had clear policies to tackle the issue.

Mr Taylor said his organisation did not oppose hospital reorganisation and in many cases it can make sense medically.

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