This story was first published in digitalhealth.net
Hancock’s ‘no privatisation’ pledge falling short
The Department of Health and Social Care handed a record total of £9.2 billion last year to private providers, despite the Health Secretary’s pledge to cut outsourcing of patient care.
The NHS annual reports indicate that the figures are an increase of 14 per cent from the £8.1 billion that went to profit-driven healthcare companies in 2014-15 and £410 million more than the £8.77 billion they received last year.
In January, Matt Hancock told MPs that would be ‘no privatisation of the NHS on my watch’.
Jonathan Ashworth, Labour’s Shadow Health and Social Care Secretary, said: “Tory privatisation of our NHS continues to gather pace with public expenditure on independent providers now at a record high. These accounts blow apart Matt Hancock’s claims to parliament there would be no privatisation on his watch.”
The accounts data also shows that total spending from the Department of Health and Social Care on all non-NHS bodies has risen even more sharply than that on private firms, from £10.32 billion in 2014-15 to £13.75 billion last year – an increase of 33 per cent over four years.
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