Treatment fund silent on hospitals

THE National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) which has paid out millions of euro to private hospitals for treating patients on public waiting lists is refusing to reveal which hospitals are getting the money.

The fund has doled out €12.52 million to private hospitals in the Republic so far this year, compared with just €500,000 to private hospitals in Northern Ireland and €160,000 to private hospitals in Britain.

However, hospitals in the Republic being paid for work through the fund have told the NTPF that they should not be identified for reasons of commercial sensitivity.