"Health minister suffers privatisation amnesia"

Tuesday 2 October 2007

"health minister suffers privatisation amnesia"

"Health Minister Pete Hodgson is suffering from amnesia over privatisation in his criticism of the National Party proposal to allow private companies to build and own public hospital facilities," said Mr Ian Powell, Executive Director of the Association of Salaried Medical Specialists, today.

"There are legitimate criticisms of the National Party's policy. In Britain this approach is known as the Private Finance Initiative which has proven to be highly controversial and fiscally questionable. It allows profits to be put ahead of patient services such as bed numbers."

"But Mr Hodgson is the last person to criticise National. In the nearly two years of being Minister of Health he has allowed more privatisation of core public hospitals services than the 'pro-privatisation' former National government ever did in the 1990s."

"Under his watch Mr Hodgson has allowed the privatisation of public hospital laboratories to proceed in a number of district health boards-Tairawhiti, Whanganui, Nelson Marlborough, Otago and Southland. He has allowed profit driven private companies to have significant influence and control over the management of this core hospital service."

"The government is right to criticise National's policy proposal but loses credibility when the criticism comes from 'Privatisation Pete'," concluded Mr Powell.

ENDS

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