John Penrose

Conservative Party | Weston-super-Mare

Pensions Commission Report

20 December 2005

John Penrose (Weston-super-Mare) (Con): Does the Secretary of State accept that the gradual introduction of payment by results puts highly efficient hospitals such as my own in Weston-super-Mare at a comparative disadvantage? Such hospitals would gain more cash, perhaps to repay financial deficits rather faster, if they were allowed to have payment by results across the whole range of services that they currently offer.

Ms Hewitt: It is perfectly true that hospitals in that position would benefit if payment by results were rolled out in the course of one year rather than four. It is not possible to do that for the reasons that I have described, but I want to stress that the overall deficit in the NHS in the last financial year was less than half of 1 per cent. and that the vast majority of NHS organisations are not only improving services, but are living within the enormously increased budgets that we have been able to give them. Payment by results will help us to ensure that all hospitals are delivering the best possible value for money and that the minority of organisations that have a deficit get those deficits under control.

Mr. Neil Gerrard (Walthamstow) (Lab): Have final decisions been made about which specialisms will not be included in the payment by results regime? The regime gives hospitals a guaranteed income, but what steps can be taken to ensure that they do not neglect treatments that are not included in payment by results?

Ms Hewitt: My hon. Friend raises an extremely important matter. We have excluded certain specialist procedures, high-cost drugs and medical devices from the payment by results regime so that they can continue to be paid for and commissioned separately. We are also ensuring that the tariff for other specialist activity is topped up, so that hospitals that undertake the most complex specialist activity are properly recognised and rewarded for their work. That continues, to the benefit of patients.

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