How much did the NHS cost to run?

How much did the NHS cost to run?

• A. £120 million
• B. £248 million
• C. £350 million
• D. £500 million

Answer: (B)

Understanding the scale of the NHS running costs in its early years helps answer this. When the NHS was created, the government needed a substantial annual budget to cover salaries for doctors and nurses, hospitals, clinics, equipment, medicines, and administration for the entire population. The figure around £248 million reflects the typical annual running cost cited for the NHS in its founding period, showing it was a large, but not astronomical, public expenditure in the immediate post-war era. The other amounts are either too small to account for universal healthcare coverage and staffing in that era, or too large for the starting budget commonly reported in historical summaries of the NHS.

Understanding the scale of the NHS running costs in its early years helps answer this. When the NHS was created, the government needed a substantial annual budget to cover salaries for doctors and nurses, hospitals, clinics, equipment, medicines, and administration for the entire population. The figure around £248 million reflects the typical annual running cost cited for the NHS in its founding period, showing it was a large, but not astronomical, public expenditure in the immediate post-war era.

The other amounts are either too small to account for universal healthcare coverage and staffing in that era, or too large for the starting budget commonly reported in historical summaries of the NHS.