Interventions are needed to urgently prevent elderly and vulnerable people from putting their health at risk, with temperatures inside some homes reaching as low as 5C last winter, according to SaaS company, Lilli<\/a>.<\/p>\n
The findings correlate strongly with a survey published by the consumer group Which?<\/a> in August this year , which found that 13 million UK households struggled with fuel poverty and did not switch on their heating when it was cold last winter in an effort to save money as heating costs soared. The risk is further evidenced by 1,000 people dying in England<\/a> as a result of living in cold and damp homes in December 2022 alone. Lower income households and those between the ages of 45 and 64 years of age were more likely to avoid putting on the heating, leading to calls for a social tariff on energy costs to alleviate the impact on vulnerable individuals.<\/p>\n
Considering this evidence, some integrated care systems have initiated schemes to support vulnerable people in paying their energy bills. Last winter, NHS Gloucestershire ICB\u2019s Warm Home Prescription<\/a> scheme paid the heating bills for around 150 individuals identified as having cold-sensitive health conditions and in danger of not being able to pay their heating bills.<\/p>\n