Warning over post-Brexit agency costs as NHS trusts report £791m deficit

National Health Service (NHS) trusts in England reported a £791 million ($1 billion) deficit last year, despite receiving an additional £1.8 billion from government through a reform program.

In acute care, most NHS trusts - the bodies responsible for delivering healthcare in hospitals and other parts of the system - are also forecasting a deficit for the current financial year.

Meanwhile Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs), the primary care providers that control around two-thirds of the NHS budget, expect to deliver a quarter billion pound surplus for the previous year, after a requirement to keep 1% of their budgets in reserve was dropped.