Great Ormond St risks losing £16m after budget review

Services for critically-ill children at Great Ormond Street Hospital could lose £16million in cuts.

The children's trust faces a 20 per cent budget reduction under an NHS funding review, which proposes slashing top-up payments to specialist hospitals.

Opposition MPs accused the Government of reneging on a healthcare spending pledge. Shadow health secretary John Healey said: "Big health cuts to children's hospitals were not what the public expected when they heard the Prime Minister's promise to protect the NHS budget."

There are 35 centres nationwide providing specialist children's services and they receive 78 per cent more than the standard "tariff" paid to other hospitals carrying out the same procedures.

The extra funding is provided because the specialist centres treat patients with complex health problems. But new guidance from NHS deputy chief David Flory proposes a cut in the "top-up" by more than two thirds - a total of £70million for all hospitals affected.

Great Ormond Street said: "Changes to the tariff are subject to discussion and refinement. We are exploring possible changes with the Department of Health and with other affected providers."

Health Secretary Andrew Lansley has denied the cuts would be as great as estimated by the hospital. He said the previous government had initiated the review and its conclusions were being considered to assess whether they were "accurate and applicable".

Other London hospitals that provide specialist care for children include Barts and the London NHS Trust as well as Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust. Barts declined to disclose the impact of the review on its children's tariff. But a spokesman said any change would be "minimal" and would be "more than compensated for" by increases in funding elsewhere.

Guy's said it had not yet assessed the impact of any tariff change. Its children's services are provided by the Evelina Children's Hospital.