Private company says it can no longer run NHS hospital

The private company Circle Health has announced plans to withdraw from its 10 year contract to run the Hinchingbrooke Hospital in Cambridgeshire just three years into the deal, after declaring that the contract was “no longer viable under current terms.”

The company, which became the first private firm to take over a franchise of an NHS hospital in England in 2012,1 said that the decision was prompted by “unprecedented increases” in emergency attendances, funding cuts, and a lack of care in place for patients awaiting discharge. It said that the decision was also influenced by an upcoming report from the healthcare regulator the Care Quality Commission that is expected to be critical of the care being provided at the trust.2

The company said that it had entered into discussions with the Trust Development Authority with a view to withdrawing from the …