ABSTRACT
This chapter investigates the nature and effectiveness of cost containment measures undertaken in the British National Health Service (NHS). It deals with a brief description of the private market for health services and medical insurance, a brief summary of the White Paper released in December 1997, and some concluding remarks. The chapter presents the essential features of the NHS, examines how its budget is set and looks at the historical trend in health care expenditure. Although the long-term trend indicates that hospital care is increasing at lower rates than those of the overall health care expenditure, latest data suggest that the situation is changing. The objective of the NHS strategy on Research and Development is quite ambitious: to create a knowledge-based health service in which clinical, managerial and policy decisions are based on sound information about research findings and scientific development.
