The drive to remove the US company Palantir from the NHS in the UK ramped up in the last few weeks, with the release of a briefing by the health justice … Read more
Commissioning
A long and dogged campaign by Keep Our NHS Public North East demanding information on the state of outsourced sexual health services has culminated in Newcastle City Council ending a … Read more
Since 2019, demand for ADHD diagnosis has rocketed, and referral rates quickly outstripped NHS service capacity. Waiting times increased substantially, with reports of several years’ wait in some areas. The Right … Read more
Social care systems in three regions of England are being deprived of millions of pounds as private companies extract large profits, with much of it going to firms owned by … Read more
The selection process for a provider of primary care services for the Whitehawk surgery in East Brighton “was neither transparent nor fair”, according to the Independent Patient Choice and Procurement Panel (IPCPP). … Read more
In an attempt to rein in the private providers of ophthalmology services, NHS England has just launched a consultation to reduce tariff prices for three of the most common procedures. … Read more
In a controversial move, the Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin Integrated Care Board (STWICB) has announced the termination of its contract with Shropdoc, a local not-for-profit organization run by GPs, for out-of-hours … Read more
Nearly one million patients in England waited over a month for their scan results in 2024, marking a 28% increase from the previous year, according to data published by the Royal College … Read more
Forty years of failure – Private sector contracting and its impact on the NHS, by Dr John Lister, offers a scathing critique of the NHS’s privatisation experiments. Each chapter peels back … Read more
Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) strapped for cash continue to see time and money disappear on lengthy procurement processes open to private companies and legal challenges. In recent weeks, two large-scale … Read more
Hundreds of non-clinical support staff are being forced out of NHS employment by East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust (ESNEFT) by a process that appeared all along to … Read more
The government plans for private hospitals to provide NHS patients in England with as many as a million extra appointments, scans and operations a year in a drive to cut … Read more
EMED, a private patient transport company taking over contracts worth hundreds of millions of pounds, is reported to be grappling with concerns about service performance and risk to patients. EMED … Read more
Nottingham University Hospitals Trust have outraged trade unions and campaigners by outsourcing parts of their finance department in the desperate effort to cut spending. The Trust faces a £104m deficit … Read more
More than 20 radiographers, radiology assistants and associated support staff, members of the GMB employed by Frimley Health have opted to suspend action following their 100% ballot vote to strike. … Read more
The private equity-owned company, HCRG Care, has been awarded a contract to lead all adult and community services across Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire (BSW) Integrated Care … Read more
Electing a Labour government with its close links to the trade unions raises many expectations. The King’s Speech commitment to legislate policy around workers’ rights includes tackling decades of outsourcing, with … Read more
A survey of 200 eye doctors by the Centre for Health and the Public Interest (CHPI), shared with the Guardian, reports that the vast majority believe increased outsourcing of cataract … Read more
Few campaigners or union activists appear to have noticed or commented upon Labour’s Manifesto commitment to roll back privatisation in public services. Some of Labour’s manifesto promises go further than … Read more
Active Care Group, a company owned by private equity that cares for hundreds of vulnerable patients for the NHS, has narrowly avoided going out of business. After months of escalating … Read more
