Elderly and vulnerable people in need of care could be treated at home in "virtual beds" rather than a hospital.
This comes as part of the government's urgent and emergency care plan, to be published Monday January 30 in attempts to ease growing pressure on the NHS. The government said the plan builds on the virtual wards already in place, which see patients treated from home while monitored by medics either through daily visits or through video calls.
About 3,000 virtual beds are due to be created before next winter, with the plan set to suggest that about 50,000 people a month could be cared for from home under ministers' ambitions.
