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The UK healthcare market continues to be dominated by the National Health Service (NHS), the large and comprehensive public sector, which remains the world-leading public healthcare service, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The NHS is funded by general taxation and National Insurance (NI) contributions.
Since its inception in 1948, it has provided comprehensive healthcare services to all UK citizens on the basis of need and not on their ability to pay. Although there is overlap between the different sectors of the healthcare market, the NHS constituted 74.3% of all healthcare spending in the UK in 2002, including private medical insurance. Total expenditure on UK healthcare (public, private and complementary) was worth £69.73bn in 2002.
Of the two main arms of the NHS, hospital and community health services, which consists of hospital-based care and certain community services, was the largest in 2002. The other branch of the NHS, responsible for primary care services (family health services), accounted for the remaining expenditure on public healthcare services.
The UK private healthcare market consists of both commercial and charitable interests, which fund and provide healthcare. The public sector is becoming a major commissioner of services in the private sector. In 2002, private healthcare, including private medical insurance, was estimated to constitute 24.3% of the UK healthcare market. The main market sectors in private healthcare are long-term care, acute hospital care, psychiatric care and primary care services. In 2002, long-term care was the largest individual sector.
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