Hip fracture patients suffering 'indefensible postcode lottery' "The range of variation in post-acute care is utterly indefensible," he said. He said in some areas the chance of ending up in a care home after a spell in hospital for hip fracture was only 15 per cent, but in other areas it topped 35 per cent. The NHS now deals with almost 80,000 hip fractures a year, costing it some £1.5 billion. Dr Currie said: "Looking after hip fracture patients well is cheaper than looking after them badly. If it all worked well, then many many more people would do straight home, which would cost a lot less. It would also save money for them be preventing premature admission to a nursing home. The report looked at data from 180 hospitals in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The database, started in 2007, shows that the chance of dying within 30 days of admission has fallen from 9.4 to 8.3 per cent since then.