Charities are warning thousands of sick and vulnerable people across Liverpool could be hit by “extremely troubling” cutbacks to their budgets.
At least 23 Liverpool charities have seen vital government funding slashed as part of a cost-cutting drive in the NHS.
Health chiefs have axed more than £1.5m from city organisations supporting people with cancer, dementia, mental illness, learning disabilities and many other serious issues.
One charity which helped young people after the Manchester bombing will lose more than £750,000, while another warned it could face closure.
Lib Dem councillor Richard Kemp said the cuts were “foolish”, with mentally ill young people and pensioners with dementia more likely to need costly hospital stays without support.
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A Liverpool CCG spokeswoman said: “NHS budgets are under increasing pressure, with demand for health services continuing to grow.
“We need to make significant savings, which unfortunately means we cannot continue to fund services we have in the past.
“Around 90% of our budget has to be spent on core NHS services, including GPs, hospitals, community and mental health, so we have to find savings in other areas.
“We have made the very difficult decision to reduce or not renew funding for a number of voluntary and community organisations.
“These decisions have not been taken lightly – we fully recognise the valuable role that the sector plays in supporting the health of local people.”
Article from The Liverpool Echo, 25 June 2017