Civitas Blog

Yesterday, the world renowned health economist and ‘father’ of managed competition, Professor Alain C. Enthoven of Stanford University, gave a lunchtime seminar at Civitas, in which he advocated the development of genuine patient-centred health care, based on integrated delivery systems and individual (cost conscious) choice in the NHS.

Those calling for integrated systems of finance, delivery, primary and secondary care are getting louder across the UK, but, according to Professor Enthoven, they must be competing: 'Kaiser Permanente leaders recognise their money and livelihood comes from the money of satisfied members/patients who have a choice. Service improvements are driven by a recognition they could go elsewhere. Kaiser recognises they are a competitor and they welcome competition'. Listen again or view his slides here.

Is summer now the season for publications pushing increased government intrusion into private conduct? The warm air has been accompanied by the somewhat chillier sensation of the release of two reports with some joyously Orwellian titles: The Politics of Public Behaviour from Demos and Creatures of Habit? The Art of Behavioural Change from the Social Market Foundation. From the mechanisms discussed in both these titles, it seems that the aspiration to get the state more involved in people’s lives remains as strong as ever among many policymakers, but combined (perhaps dangerously) with fresh research into behavioural economics.

Continue reading "Big Brother’s beady eyes" »

Who can fail but to be deeply moved, if not humbled, by the magnanimous words of compassion spoken by the mother of sixteen year old Jimmy Mizen, London’s latest teenage murder victim?

continued on the Centre for Social Cohesion blog.

Wednesday 14th of May will see the inaugural London Boxing Academy Gala Dinner. The aim of the evening will be to raise awareness about and money for the invaluable work that the Academy is doing.

Continue reading "An evening in support of the London Boxing Academy" »

In a head-to-head debate in the British Medical Journal, we argue that instead of backing away from the reality that supplementing of NHS care with private treatment is already widespread – and will become even more so as the finite budget of the NHS becomes less able to cover the medical care that people want or require – the government should instead work towards creating an equitable framework for top-up fees. This would allow access to new drugs and treatments to all, rather than just the wealthy as is the case currently.

Continue reading "An equitable solution for "top-up" fees" »