Covid-19: an opportunity to reduce unnecessary healthcare

[Extract]
Alongside the human suffering, covid-19 is also threatening the sustainability of health systems. The continuing costs of the pandemic combined with the impending financial crisis will inevitably mean having to do more with less. The tragedy of the pandemic has paradoxically produced an opportunity to tackle the increasingly recognised challenge of “too much medicine” safely and fairly—to help improve both sustainability and equity in healthcare. This well described problem of unnecessary tests, diagnoses, and treatments causes harm and wastes resources that could be better used for those in genuine need.