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Free health care and government failure

Geoff Riley

21st March 2010

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A hat tip to my colleague Tom Allen for spotting this great example in a recent Times article of the untintended consequences of providing the bulk of NHS care free at the point of need. Tom writes:

There was also an excellent article in the Times about the government of providing health care at zero price.

“20% of visits to GPs are for coughs and common colds. This costs the NHS £2bn a year, without making any difference to people’s health.The NHS has become a victim of demand-led culture…. £10 per visit should be enough to deter people with sniffles.”

Here is the rest of the article: Of course demand for GPs is too high — a visit costs zero

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Geoff Riley

Geoff Riley FRSA has been teaching Economics for nearly forty years. He has over twenty years experience as Head of Economics at leading schools. He writes extensively and is a contributor and presenter on CPD and Revision conferences in the UK and overseas.

@tutor2uGeoff

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