REVERSE E-AUCTIONS FOR PALLIATIVE AND DEMENTIA CARE CONTRACTS

That this House is deeply sceptical about the use of reverse e-auctions by the NHS for palliative and dementia care contracts for the elderly when they leave hospital; regrets that where such auctions have been used, standards and quality have deteriorated rapidly; notes that one company was struck off the national register of approved providers only weeks after winning a local authority's reverse auction because the level of palliative care it offered was of such poor quality; and therefore calls on the Government to ban the practice, which is undignified and treats vulnerable elderly people as commodities to be bid for.