Poor homes costs NHS £1.4bn

New research from The Building Research Establishment (BRE) has found that poor housing is costing the NHS £1.4bn a year.

Health and safety hazards in the home are costing the NHS over a billion. The highest cost is excess cold, which costs the NHS  £857m every year. To mitigate this, it would cost £6bn.

Another big cost is people injuring themselves by falling, mostly on stairs.

“Millions of individuals and families are living in unhealthy housing – a reality that is having a huge impact on the NHS,” said Gillian Charlesworth, BRE’s chief executive.

“The cost burdens currently being faced by the NHS and wider society from unhealthy housing will continue unless a targeted effort is undertaken to improve the poorest housing stock”.