The private health companies set to profit from Labour’s NHS plans
A City broker has said Feedback and One Health Group are expected to be the main beneficiaries of the government’s plans to reform the NHS in the UK.
The Elective Reform Plan, published yesterday by NHS England, set out a range of reforms to enable the government to hit the 18-week target for referral to treatment.
Julie Simmonds, research analyst at Panmure Liberum, noted that the plan included increasing access to Community Diagnostic Centres (CDCs) and expanding surgical hubs.
Funding for these new hubs is set to come from a £1.5bn capital investment set out in the Autumn Budget, though there is no detail on the specific allocations.
Panmure analysts highlighted Feedback as the main beneficiary of the potential NHS reforms, having made recent partnerships to allow it to implement its business at scale.
The company already has experience working within CDCs, and its recent approval as a Diagnostic Enhanced Advice and Guidance tool gives it access to the funds meant to reform the NHS.
Feedback’s platform Bleepa is currently the only tech available to doctors with the ability to share clinical images for diagnosis, which “could be essential in the transmission of diagnostic information for multi-clinician discussion to streamline patient care,” said Simmonds.
“The company is a true speculative Buy, but the potential is becoming increasingly tangible, and interests are increasingly aligned with national policy,” she added.
Panmure assigned Feedback a target price of 60p, compared to its current stock price of 18p.
One Health was also selected by Panmure analysts as a strong Buy, with Simmonds stating: “It’s almost as if the government has used One Health’s business plan as a blueprint for reducing waiting lists.”
The firm’s “proven model” of reducing waiting lists and leveraging spare independent capacity, along with its planned surgical hubs, set it up to be used by the NHS, she said.
“Making Patient Choice available on the NHS App will increase demand with One Health using Patient Choice as its main way to access patients,” Simmonds added.
One Health was assigned a target price of £2.75 by Panmure, compared to its current share price of £2.10.
Spire Healthcare set to profit
Another potential beneficiaries of the government’s health plan include FTSE 250 private health giant Spire Healthcare, thanks to the “clear acknowledgement from the government that the Independent sector will have an ongoing role to play,” said Simmonds.
In addition, occupational health and wellbeing company Optima Health could benefit from an increased interest in digital triage services, which could be used in both the drive for increased use of tech and a shift towards community care.