Senator Teddy Kennedy died this week.

A flawed but towering presence in US politics.

He, sadly, passed away not knowing the outcome of President Obama's healthcare reform plans. 

Healthcare reform is long overdue in the US but it looks like the plans are running into trouble, even in the Democratic Party.

Idiotic Republican right-wingers have launched ignorant attacks on the NHS.  Sarah Palin going as far as to say the NHS is 'wicked'.

Another Senator claimed Kennedy would have died long ago if he lived in the UK and had been subject to 'NHS ageist rationing' 

With 57m US citizens without decent health coverage, we need accept no lessons from the US on healthcare access. 

However, the Tories seem to be in disarray.  As David Cameron struggles to show how much he loves the NHS a recent poll claimed over half of Tory back benchers were against ring-fencing NHS funding. 

Oddly it is middle America that has most to gain from the Obama plans.  Healthcare would no longer be linked to employment and pre-existing conditions would not be a bar to cover.

The UK is in the grip of an acknowledged swine flu pandemic which will have serious implications for all sectors of UK society and business. There are also huge implications for the National Health Service, some of which present themselves as opportunities for suppliers. So, at the rsik of being seen to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear (sorry for the pig reference!), here are the key issues:

1. Pressure on NHS critical care and intensive care will intensify, particularly in the paediatric sector where a number of serious presentations and deaths have sadly already occurred. Products that can be used to urgently and effectively treat respiratory complications and provide life support are in increased demand.

2. Communication is a substantial problem within the NHS. Administrators are being forced to supply detailed case number and severity information to national and regional planners on a daily basis and many are already complaining of the speed with which the NHS is able to review and distribute the key facts and guidance. If you are a supplier of software or data recording equipment that can help then you may find a positive hearing.

3. Whilst the Government has put in place a system whereby infected people can get anti-viral medicines without having to visit their local pharmacy, the pandemic has reignited the debate over telemedicine and the service that it can provide. 

Whilst the labour government and conservative opposition prepare their battle lines for the next election, what are the implications for health spending in the UK?

Both labour and conservative politicians have recently been engaged in press, radio and TV interviews where they have reinforced their parties' commitment to the National Health Service. Labour (in the shape of newly appointed Secretary of State for Health, Andy Burnham) has spent record breaking sums of money on the health service in Britain, but the National Audit Office is unconvinced of the value that has been wrought. Commitment has been made for 5.5% spending increases for Primary Care Trusts up to 2011, but after that there is uncertainty. Burnham has sought to attack the conservatives through pledging commitment to further expenditure post 2011, but knows that the odds do not favour his party's election at present. He also knows the debt mountain that Britain now has and the implications for spending of any type as a result.

The conservatives (in the shape of Shadow Secretary of State for Health, Andrew Lansley) have also pledged financial commitment to the NHS post 2011, and have said that this may mean cuts of up to 10% for some other departments. They know that they would be instantly billed as the 'Party that is going to Destroy the NHS' by labour if they say anything else, of course. What is certain is that every NHS department will be asked to go back to a zero base should the conservatives assume power and make pitches for budget based on delivering on national health priorities (which will be set by the conservatives).

Implications for providers / suppliers of anything to the NHS post 2011 are clear - you must demonstrate how the product either saves the NHS money or delivers a substantially better patient outcome in line with national priorities. If you can't, then selling anything to the NHS is going to be like pushing water up hill. Good business cases will ensure a favourable hearing / sales outcome - and you can expect no favours from anyone if their decision cannot be grounded in a detailed understanding of cost implications. You have been warned...