Cherry picking the NHS

Many objections to NHS reform centre on the threat of cherry picking by the private sector: the idea that private companies will select just the easiest cases to deal with, leaving the harder ones to the NHS.

They will ...

Competion in the NHS

Introducing private competition in the NHS will improve transparency. But only if done properly. 
Sadly, the track record of public procurement in the UK suggests that it won't be done properly; that, instead

Patient Choice in NHS?

"Patient choice" is just a bit of spin. It is clear from the many comments here that it is a fiction: the patient is not a sovereign consumer.