§ 14. Mr. Galleyasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what information is available to his Department about comparative unit costs for providing patient services in different health authority areas and different hospitals.
§ Mr. HayhoeUnit costs are reported to the Department annually for each hospital in England and for other services. Summaries of these costs for the regions and for England are published. In addition, the performance indicators published by the Department include detailed information about unit costs, which health authorities can use to compare their own performance with that of other districts.
§ Mr. GalleyCan my right hon. Friend confirm that unit costs for private patient services in some parts of London are 30 per cent. higher than in the regions, even taking account of the London weighting factor? Will he make more readily available in published form the comprehensive comparative information about efficiency so that we may know which are inefficient and uncaring authorities and which authorities care enough to make the best use of their resources?
§ Mr. HayhoeYes, I shall certainly consider the possibility of publishing these figures. In regard to the comparison between London and the rest of the country, in the large acute hospitals of over 300 beds the highest average cost per in-patient case is in the North-West Thames region, where it is £901. That compares with a figure for the Oxford region, the lowest, of £579, and for Yorkshire, the second lowest, of £602. The English average is £714. That shows the higher costs in the Thames region, which are partly explained by London weighting and the concentration of more expensive types of cases being treated in those hospitals.
§ Mr. AshtonIf all those statistics are available to answer what seems to be a planted question, why is it that the Minister, when I put down written questions about my area, says that I should ask Trent regional health authority? Why is it that he can supply those statistics when he feels like it, but, every time Opposition Members ask questions about statistics and comparisons, we are referred to the regional health authorities?
§ Mr. HayhoeThe figures that I have given are published figures that can be found in the Library of the House.
Mr. John Mark TaylorDoes my right hon. Friend accept that costs and services in Solihull will be greatly improved by the decision to give us a district general hospital? Will he acept the appreciation of the people of Solihull for that decision?
§ Mr. HayhoeYes, indeed. It is important that we take note of the considerable progress being made in many areas in improving health care facilities by the application of RAWP policies.