THE new Aneurin Bevan Health Board inherited an overspend of £11.7 million from Gwent Healthcare Trust and Gwent's five Local Health Boards, when it took over their responsibilities earlier this month for providing the area's healthcare.

And though the health board - one of seven new single NHS bodies created as a result of health service restructuring in Wales - aims to bridge that gap and make further savings in the final six months of the current financial year, its plans may be disrupted by the demands of a familiar financial problem.

The ever-rising cost of Continuing Healthcare, the system through which the NHS funds individual packages of often complex care, including nursing home fees, could yet add several millions of pounds to the overspend.

Close to £7m of the £11.7m deficit, accrued by the former trust and LHBs since April, is down to an overspend on Continuing Healthcare, which has posed a huge financial headache for health bosses for three or four years, since a series of court rulings and new eligibility guidance sparked a big increase in claims.

The cost of Continuing Healthcare across Gwent during April-September this year was £33.8m, more than £10m up on the same period last year, and it is estimated that if demand continues to rise, the issue could add an extra £5.5m to the overspend.

Reviews of individual Continuing Healthcare cases are being carried out, to ensure appropriate care plans are in place and to try to control spending.

Another issue contributing to the overspend is the cost of meeting the maximum six-month waiting time for patients, now known as the Referral To Treatment Time target, by the end of December. This is currently £3.5m above budget.