NHS spends £80m on private ambulances a year, data shows

NHS spends £80m on private ambulances a year, data shows Staff shortages and rising demand have forced NHS trusts to hire non-NHS ambulances, leading to fears of lower care standards

The NHS is spending almost £80m a year hiring private ambulances to answer 999 calls and take patients to hospital for appointments, new figures show.

Widespread shortages of paramedics and rising demand forced England’s 10 NHS ambulance trusts to spend £78.4m in 2016-17 on help from non-NHS providers to supplement their own services. That was down on the £79.7m trusts spent in 2015-16, but 22% more than their £64.2m outlay in 2014-15, according to data obtained by the Press Association under freedom of information laws. Continue reading... The Guardian