THIRTEEN GP practices in Liverpool could be run by private companies by next year, the Daily Post can reveal.
Management contracts on the surgeries, including practices within the new health centre at Childwall Fiveways and Marybone in the city centre, have been put out to tender by Liverpool Primary Care Trust (PCT).
The health body last night reassured patients that services would not change.
A spokeswoman added that by law the trust has to put out contracts to tender when current ones run out, in this case by next March.
But members of campaign group Keep Our NHS Public (KONP) say it is “outrageous” patients have no say.
Campaign group member Sam Semoff, who has been a patient at Princes Park Health Centre for nearly 30 years, said: “It's outrageous some outfit, such as Boots, can take over my surgery when their only concern is to make a profit for their shareholders and I had no say in the matter.
“So much for patient choice.”
The practices in question contain salaried GPs who do not run their own surgeries.
The majority of the 13 are currently run by Liverpool Community Health (LCH) – an NHS trust formally part of the PCT.
But three are already run by private firms. Most other surgeries in the city are run by GPs themselves who are partners in the practices, so they are not affected.
Private companies including Care UK and Virgin-Assura are understood to be interested but it is very likely NHS trusts like LCH will also put themselves forward. KONP is also concerned practices run by companies would not be obliged to provide additional services currently on offer in many surgeries.
However Liverpool PCT said this was not the case.
The trust claimed additional services in health centres would still be provided by the NHS as the contracts only concern GP provision, not other health centre services.
Factors like extended opening hours could also be written into a contract to make it compulsory for GPs to work evenings and weekends.
A spokeswoman said: “We are currently re-tendering for 13 GP practices in Liverpool.
“Although this process is a contractual requirement, it also gives us the opportunity to ensure great consistency for patients by making sure that the new contracts specify things such as extended opening hours, cancer referral systems and care for patients with long-term conditions.
“Each practice will also have to provide additional enhanced services based on the needs of their population and there is no intention to change any of the services which are currently commissioned.
“All GP practices will either stay in their current locations or are already planning relocations to health centres which will mean they are co-located with additional community and health services.
“Overall patients will still experience the same – if not improved – access to and quality of GP services in the same place as they do now.”
She added the re-tendering was nothing to do with the Government’s controversial Health and Social Care Bill.
