Intended for healthcare professionals

Rapid response to:

Analysis

Competition in a publicly funded healthcare system

BMJ 2007; 335 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.39400.549502.94 (Published 29 November 2007) Cite this as: BMJ 2007;335:1126

Rapid Response:

Don’t let the buck stop here!

These are joyous words from an all too quiet American – or two – all
succinctly summarised in the last paragraph of healthy lessons to be
learned by countries outside the US.

“Health systems in every nation need innovation and improvement. But
remedies imported from commerce consistently yield inferior care at
inflated prices.”

These fine words should be tattooed on the Prime Minister’s forehead
for the Health Secretary to read when he gets the urge to move his lips
again.

The people of the UK have learned that the American dollar is a
busted flush: our beloved leaders must realize that plotting the ‘American
Way’ is plodding the wrong path to fiscal wellness or any sort of
healthiness otherwise. If only that particular penny would drop heavily …
on the government and the department of health in this country.

Competing interests:
None declared

Competing interests: No competing interests

03 December 2007
Mark Struthers
General Practitioner
Bedfordshire, UK. mark.struthers@which.net