Supply costs 'vary across NHS'

Some NHS trusts are paying over twice the average price for vital equipment, says research
19 November 2012

Some hospitals are paying hundreds of pounds more for essential medical supplies than others, research has suggested.

A number of NHS trusts are paying over twice the average price for items such as warming blankets, according to a snapshot analysis of NHS procurement processes.

Data from 10 NHS trusts in England shows stark contrasts in the amount of money each pay for items such as forceps, stents and other surgical tools.

Knee implants can be sold to one trust for £634 and to another for £1,109, according to the data from consultants Ernst and Young and Peto, the product comparison website for the NHS.

The average price for adult warming blankets is £60 for a box of 10 but some trusts pay up to £124 for the same product. A pack of medical forceps is purchased for £13 by some trusts but others pay up to £23.

The organisations suggest that hundreds of millions could be saved each year if the current procurement practices are reformed. They said that a lack of price transparency means NHS trusts and hospitals are not able to ensure best value for services.

Joe Stringer, partner at Ernst and Young, said: "Our analysis raises serious concerns about price variation and spending in the procurement of NHS supplies. At the root of this problem lies the lack of transparency in the market, leaving trusts unable to make cost-efficient decisions about purchasing supplies."

Julian Trent, managing director of Peto, added: "Given the NHS's £20 billion efficiency drive to cut waste, an obvious place to make savings without compromising patient care is by changing the way NHS buys products and services. Through the simple introduction of price transparency between NHS suppliers this figure can be reduced by £500 million.

"The Government's current review of procurement practices must put an end to unethical charging within the NHS so that trusts can purchase supplies of best value and quality."

Sara Gorton, deputy head of health at union Unison, said: "It is a disgrace that medical suppliers should exploit the NHS by charging as much as they can get away with. NHS logistics was created to help bring in economies of scale, but that has since been privatised and it seems clear that the NHS and its patients are the losers."

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