The NHS litigation avalanche
Daily digest The NHS is facing a litigation timebomb, according to today's papers. And high street vacancies have the BRC worried. Niall Hunt reports
Patient groups have urged NHS trusts to admit mistakes to patients, the Telegraph writes, as the NHS faces £15.7 billion in negligence claims. The Daily Mail writes that the cost of lawyers alone is £15 billion as the NHS faces an "avalanche of no-win, no-fee claims". The MHRA is holding consultation on a request to reclassify Imodium Instants (loperamide hydrochloride) 12 tablet pack size from P to GSL. Visit the MHRA website www.mhra.gov.uk to take part in the consultation. And research covered by the Mail that Aspirin is not to blame for gastric bleeds, as previously thought. The the British Retail Consortium (BRC) has called for "urgent action" to boost high street businesses, after a report from the Local Data Company found that shop vacancy rates remained at 14 per cent in the UK. The BRC warned that the government should not go ahead with its plans to increase business rates by an "eye-watering" 5.6 per cent in April. GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has unveiled its plans for 2012, which it says will help the company achieve its ambition to become the world's first fast-moving consumer healthcare (FMCH) company. Giving babies finger foods during weaning can stop them from growing up fat, the Mail reports. The BBC writes that babies that are spoon fed mashed up fruit and vegetables are more likely to develop a sweet tooth.