Published 5 May 2009, doi:10.1136/bmj.b1798
Cite this as: BMJ 2009;338:b1798

Feature

Freedom of Information

Open government?

¹ Hertfordshire

Researchers are turning to the Freedom of Information Act to shed light on health policy decisions, but, as Jane Cassidy reports, getting data is not always straightforward

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

The Freedom of Information Act has helped expose massive NHS overpayment to private healthcare companies, an article in the BMJ reports.¹ The case came to light after a doctor joined forces with academics to release the financial details of a contract for an independent sector treatment centre between an NHS trust and a private healthcare company in Scotland.

Researchers at the Centre for International Public Health Policy at Edinburgh University discovered a possible overpayment of more than £4m (4.4m; $6m) to the company in the contract’s first year. When they applied the Scottish findings to the whole independent sector treatment centre (ISTC) programme in England, they concluded more than a billion pounds may have been overpaid.

The case highlights how the Freedom of Information Act has great potential to promote transparency and accountability. However, it also shows the obstacles facing those using the legislation. John Evans, a retired consultant . . . [Full text of this article]

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