Our soluton is not politically aligned or ideologically motivated, nor is it designed to promote or bolster the independent sector. It merely recognises that the country has a network of high-quality facilities in that sector, which the NHS already contracts with to meet demand.
It is not diluting the NHS’s resources by diverting these away to do 'private work'. The country has operated a ‘mixed economy’ in healthcare for decades. For those who choose to, NHS consultants are contractually permitted to treat patients privately, the NHS treats private patients in its own private patient units, the NHS contracts with the independent sector for a range of services and support, and some patients access both sectors to obtain treatment, paying accordingly.
It is not about creating a two-tier system based on ability to pay, nor is it creeping privatisation. We simply recognise that this mixed economy in healthcare provision already exists, and organised these established practices into an affordable, publicly owned and managed funding 'top-up', in a way which will increase the overall level of funding for health.
Our sole motivation is to protect and strengthen the NHS, enabling it to remain free at the point of use, and 'fix' social care, for the benefit of us all.
“It’s not about ‘public good, private bad’. The answer is, the NHS has been underfunded”
— Niall Dixon, NHS Confederation, The Big Questions, BBC 1, May 2017
