A group of 70 MPs including Diane Abbott, Ian Blackford and Jeremy Corbyn, have come out to oppose the takeover of nearly 50 GP practices by US health insurance firm Centene.
The MPs backed an early day motion tabled by six MPs, expressing alarm at the February 2021 takeover of AT Medics by Operose, a subsidiary of US health company Centene. AT Medics has a large number of APMS (alternative medical provider services) contracts, including 49 GP practices across England.
Within the motion the MPs say they are concerned that the “prioritisation of profit in the provision of NHS services will lead to a loss of more GP surgeries, will hurt the quality of care patients receive, and will further undermine the pay and conditions of those who work in GP surgeries and in the NHS”.
The motion further calls for “all outsourcing to the profit-driven private health sector to end and for the NHS to be returned to a publicly funded, publicly provided, comprehensive health care service, available to all that is free at the point of delivery”.
When approached for comment by Health & Protection, an Operose Health spokesperson said: “Operose Health shares NHS values, provides NHS services and cares for NHS patients. Like other NHS providers, our care is free at the point of delivery, regulated and inspected by the Care Quality Commission.”
