Health chiefs say they will have to save more than £20m from Manchester’s NHS budget this year. It comes after £30m in cuts in spending last year.
NHS Manchester is now drawing up plans including slashing management costs by £3.7m and cutting £2m by rationing treatment.
A new system for GPs’ referrals is being credited with helping make savings last year.
All treatment apart from mental health, obstetrics and urgent care, now has to go through a ‘referral gateway’ before being approved.
Health chiefs say it is designed to stop NHS cash being used for cosmetic and lifestyle procedures such as weight-loss surgery and breast enhancements.
Bosses had expected to carry over £7m of debt into the 2011/12 budget, but say an improved position during the final three months of the last financial year means that figure is now £5.7m
Steve Wilson, acting director of finance for NHS Manchester, said: "Thanks to successful collaborative working with our partners, and the hard work of our staff, NHS Manchester was successful in saving the £30m necessary for us to break even in the 2010/11 financial year.
"This year we need to save a further £21.4m in order to fund the increasing demand for health services in the city and to invest further in services such as health visiting.
"We are working with the emerging GP consortia in the city to develop the detail of our savings plans and are reducing our running costs by £3.7m.
"We are confident we will make these savings targets whilst continuing to work with our partners to improve the quality and efficiency of health services in Manchester."
The NHS across Greater Manchester is under pressure to save £1bn by 2014.
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Type your comment here...Gordon Brown more or less doubled the NHS budget but didn't say where the money should be spent. The result was that most of it went in doubling GP's salaries so save the £20 million by taking it back from the GPs who now have cut their hours and more than doubled their salaries.
So after cutting management and treatment only another £14.3 million not to spend.
They say that mental health is high om their priorities well tell that to my son who tried to commit suicide took 2 months to get a referral to see someone then told after 6 sessions he would have to pay for any further sessions (only on minimum wage)dispite the fact he lost his grandad shortly into treatment setting him back by weeks and now being told his other grandad only has weeks left to live. Has been to his gp who basicly tolf him to grow up pull himself together and get on with it as he has had treatment within the last 12 months