Profiteering concerns surround healthcare private equities in UK

LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM — Research has found that investments by private equity firms to improve the UK’s healthcare system have not yielded any positive results. In fact, they raise critical issues regarding the proper and ethical use of taxpayer funds.

Around £1.5 billion ($1.9 billion) is taken out of the care home sector each year through different returns to private equity firms, according to research by The Guardian at the Centre for Health and the Public Interest.

The UK’s home care sector saw 40,000 deaths during the pandemic, which was supported by £2 billion ($2.5 billion) of taxpayer money. 

Private companies reportedly netted dividend payments totaling £120 million ($153.5 million) during the last year of the pandemic, all while healthcare frontliners worked longer hours with no extra pay.

This questionable business model extends to foster homes, where more than 80% are provided on a for-profit basis. Mental health institutions in the UK, backed by various private equities, also serve as major revenue streams. 

Also, research found that a number of The National Health Service NHS-backed Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARCs) are owned by private equities. 

These centers tend to people who have been sexually assaulted through psychological and medical care.

One company paid out dividends worth £8.7 million ($11.7 million) over two years from income of £45 million ($57.5 million) that it had generated from offering both SARCS and healthcare services. 

While private equities promise massive improvements in healthcare delivery, various studies show their initiatives have not churned good results.

A paper in the BMJ found that private equity ownership compounded costs with “mixed to harmful impacts” on quality. 

Meanwhile, A U.S. review of deaths in nursing homes for older people found a 10% increase in mortality when a private equity-backed company acquired it.