The 10-year plan will focus on closing health inequalities by reviewing the way GP funding is allocated, according to the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC).
It said that currently practices that serve working class areas receive on average 10% less funding per patient than those in more affluent areas.
Speaking in Blackpool today, the health secretary is expected to say that the DHSC will prioritise investment in the towns that have the ‘greatest health needs and the fewest GPs’.
The DHSC said this will be funded through the cuts to ‘wasteful spending’ and ‘driving out the culture of deficits’.
The health secretary said: ‘The truth is, those in greatest need often receive the worst quality healthcare. It flies in the face of the values the NHS was founded on. The circumstances of your birth shouldn’t determine your worth. A core ambition of our ten-year plan will be to restore the promise of the NHS, to provide first class healthcare for everyone in our country and end the postcode lottery.
‘Last year we sent crack teams of top clinicians to hospitals in parts of the country with the highest waiting lists and levels of economic inactivity. It has seen waiting lists in those areas falling twice as fast as the rest of the country, helping get sick Brits back to health and back to work.
‘Thanks to the reforms we’ve made to bear down on wasteful spending, we can now invest the savings in working class communities that need it most. Where towns have the greatest health needs and the fewest GPs, we will prioritise investment to rebuild your NHS and rebuild the health of your community.’
However, the Health Foundation said this was ‘not the first time’ GP funding has been reviewed.
Director of policy, Hugh Alderwick, said: ‘The real test for government is whether they follow it up with the policy change and investment needed in response.
‘The review should look at the range of funding sources going into general practice, how this money is best used, and the extra investment needed to avoid patients in some areas losing out. Making this happen will depend on additional funding going into general practice – not relying on heroic assumptions about improving efficiency in hospitals.’
Chief executive of NHS Providers, Daniel Elkeles, added: ‘It is important to ensure a fair funding deal for the most deprived communities, with support to help more people stay well.
‘Trusts are playing a key role in generating the savings that will help underpin this commitment and are at the forefront of work to improve prevention.
‘We look forward to seeing the details of any new funding approach in the 10 Year Health Plan.’
He added: ‘While the NHS must and will play its part in addressing health inequalities, it’s important to recognise that the causes of ill health lie predominantly in wider societal issues including education, housing and transport.’
It comes as NHS England told ICBs to delay pay rises for very senior managers until ICBs are segmented.
ICBs have been unveiling their plans to cut costs over the past couple of months, including two London ICBs that are exploring a merger.
