The National Health Service (NHS) is the collective term for the four separate publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom: the National Health Service (England), NHS Scotland, NHS Wales, and Health and Social Care which was created separately and is often referred to locally as "the NHS". The original systems were established in 1948 as part of major social reforms following the Second World War, and officially launched at Park Hospital in Davyhulme, near Manchester, England. The founding principles were that services should be comprehensive, universal and free at the point of delivery. Each system provides a comprehensive range of health services, provided without charge for residents of the United Kingdom apart from dental treatment and optical care, though NHS patients in England who are not exempt have to pay prescription charges.
