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Commenting on the article’s report that last-minute amendments to the Care Bill would allow the Coalition government to shut down A&E departments and hospitals without proper public consultation, Ken Cheslett, Chair of Calderdale 38 degrees NHS campaign group said,
“This is reminiscent of this goverment’s high handed approach to the huge opposition to its Health and Social Care Act, whereby the wishes and needs of local people are overruled in favour of the profit motive.”
The government is trying to push through a last minute change to the law to make it far easier to shut down A&E departments and hospitals without full consultation.
Amendments tabled yesterday to the Care Bill – due to have its third reading in the Lords on Monday – give the government or Monitor the right to order any hospital they like to ‘reconfigure’ – in other words, close – with little consultation, to benefit neighbouring struggling hospitals.
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