NHS Reform: eight reasons to sign the petition

Following the The Royal College of Nursing's vote of 'no confidence' towards Tory plan to reform the NHS I wanted make the case for singing the petition on 38degrees which already has over 250,000 signatures.

In summary, the Tory NHS reforms will remove Primary Care Trusts (who currently manage regional health care budgets) and place GPs with the responsability for managing their own budgets.  GPs will have the power to choose health service providers which can be from the public or private sector.  The argument is reform will create competition amongst health care service providers and consequently drive down prices and the cost of the NHS.  Likewise, removing Primary Care Trusts would remove management costs and place GP doctors in the driving seat. 

The Labour Party released this article ‘Undermining the NHS The hidden reality of David Cameron’s health reforms’ which outlines five reasons why the NHS reforms should be rejected:

"1. No protection from insolvency for NHS hospitals – NHS hospitals could go bust, leaving patients without the services they have relied on.

2. EU competition law and fining hospitals – NHS hospitals could be fined up to 10% of their turnover by the new economic regulation.

3. Weakening local accountability over NHS closures and reconfigurations – Local NHS services could be closed down without any consultation.

4. Putting private patients first – NHS patients could suffer as hospitals prioritise those who can afford to pay.

5. New GP powers to charge for services"

Heres three more points the paper missed:

6. Privatisation: The NHS reforms is certainly a huge leap towards privatisation of the NHS.  Neo Liberal projects the World over have proven that privatisation leads to higher prices and not lower as their economic rhetoric would suggest.  The result will be worse provision of services at higher prices paid from the government budget.  Unlike the Tory spin suggests it will not be social enterprises and charities that end up providing health care services, but large multinational corporations who have the capital and influence to win contracts. 

It’s not surprising this has been overlooked by the Labour Party who have been taking steps along the NHS privatisation road for many year, notability through the Private Financial Initiatives.  

7. Anti-democratic: The Tory party made no mention of NHS reforms during last years

election and David Cameron even promised "no top-down reorganisation of the NHS". 

8. Impractical: it seems totally impractical to get doctors to use their time on bureaucratic duties and managing budgets when they surely have better things to be doing.

More reasons to reject the NHS reform would be welcome.