Scotland’s health secretary announced a national winter preparedness plan on 8 October. The measures include expanding Hospital at Home, with more than 10,000 patients expected to benefit, and applying a Home First approach to care and discharge. A public information campaign was scheduled to start at the end of October.

The plan also sets aside winter-specific planned-care support from £90 million in waiting-list funding announced earlier in 2026 and continues work to improve hospital patient flow. The government said almost 6,700 people were hospitalised with flu last winter, including nearly 5,000 adults and 1,700 children. These are stated actions and previous-season figures, not a forecast of winter admissions.