The privatization of the NHS posted by Richard Seymour

The rich want healthcare. Believe them about this. They want hospitals, doctor's practices, insurance, patient care, pharmaceutical provision, all of it.

Last year, four out of the 10 most profitable industries in the US were healthcare-related. This was due to the fact that these industries were providing services rather than more tangible products, thus keeping overheads low, and the fact that the services were, in the sickly phrase of Forbes magazine, "need-to-have". That is, compulsory. Need to have, or you'll die.

This is why healthcare is such a prized asset for businesses, and why they are desperate to crack open health sectors globally. And it is one reason why the British coalition government is undertaking the most fundamental demolition job on the National Health Service since its foundation in 1948.

Labels: capitalism, health care, neoliberalism, new labour, NHS, privatisation, tories