PRIVATE OPERATORS AND CLINICAL ASSESSMENT TREAT AND SUPPORT SERVICES

That this House notes with concern proposals for the introduction of the new Clinical Assessment Treat and Support Services (CATS) system due to be operated by private companies as opposed to the NHS; recognises that private healthcare operators such as Netcare operate on a profit-making basis and will only operate if they are given a guarantee in terms of volume of throughput of patients; expresses concern that if such guarantees are given units and wards at NHS hospitals will close as private operators profit from the loss of patients attending NHS hospitals; further notes the damage that this will cause to hospitals as doctors and nurses are made redundant, training facilities lost, and private operators left with a private monopoly of diagnostic services; and calls on the Government to re-examine plans for CATS and the role of the private sector and ensure that CATS is run through the NHS with the private sector only being used to take out excess capacity from the NHS as opposed to being provided with guarantees over throughput of patients.