Prime Minister Theresa May has announced that Jeremy Hunt remains as secretary of state for health but has new added social care responsibilites.
In today’s (8 January) cabinet reshuffle, the Prime Minister added an extension to Mr Hunt’s current job title to Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, which was previously held by Marcus Jones.
Commenting on the move, Professor Helen Stokes-Lampard, Chair of the Royal College of GPs (RCGPs), said that ‘this is a critical role at a critical time for general practice and the wider NHS’
She said: ‘We will continue to work constructively with Jeremy Hunt in his expanded role as Secretary of State for both Health and Social Care in England.
‘We support the bringing together of health and social care into the portfolio of one minister as we recognise that what happens to patients in the NHS is profoundly impacted by the state of social care.’
As social care is funded by local government, this new title could be a step towards more integration of social care into the Department of Health (DH).
