Published by Socialist Resistance, PO Box 1109, London N4 2UU. www.socialistresistance.net. Printed by Forest Printing, London E10 elite of "Foundation Hospitals" as selfcontained 'public interest' private companies (with extra powers to borrow capital from the private sector and to vary their pay levels to poach staff from elsewhere in the NHS).
The result is a formula for competition, chaos and increased privatisation.
The reforms are being railroaded through at a reckless pace, regardless of the chorus of opposition from health unions, professional organisations and a conspicuous lack of public support. Dodgy figures
To make matters worse, the statistics on which the new tariff of fees per operation will be based are notoriously unreliable: for example the figures in 2000 for a basic hip replacement ranged from a reported minimum of just €566 (barely enough to pay for the replacement joint itself to a maximum of almost £13,000.
Even the most carefully adjusted figures show a varation between almost £7,000 in Shrewsbury and E2,200 in Preston. Any "average" will leave many stranded above the line looking for cuts.
Dozens of hospitals are already in the red: dozens more will be driven into crisis by these plans.
If the tariff is set too low, there is always the danger that local Trusts may opt out of providing certain treatments altogether, or decide to market their services to private patients who can be charged more for the same treatment.
Milburn, one of New Labour's "hard men", is convinced that the private sector is better and more efficient than public services: millions of patients seem set to be used as guinea pigs in his new, mad experiment with market methods.
The health unions have to step up the fight to stop him.