Verum writes: The central philosophy of the NHS has been reaffirmed

The Health and Social Care Bill, proposing reorganisation of NHS services, attracted widespread comment. The fact that there were diametrically opposed views was no great surprise, given the complexity of the NHS and the scale of reform proposed. Concerns were expressed regarding GP commissioning critics pointed out that GPs would be taking almost sole responsibility for decisions regarding clinical care and control of 80 per cent of NHS budgets, leading to too much control in the hands of one group. Input would not automatically be sought from other healthcare professionals. As already set out in this column (06.05.11), a concern was the lack of involvement of optometry in the decision-making process.