08.05.12
Swindlers’ den
When there is fraud at taxpayer expense, should the finger be pointed at the fraudster, or the rules and systems that allowed them to get away with it?
This is the row between the Conservatives and Labour over these grimy dentistry figures, which showed that somewhere between 3% and 25% of invoices for NHS dentistry during a check in March 2010 were suspected as fraudulent.
The figure is likely to be closer to the 3% end of that spectrum – 25% includes all the ‘unverifiables’ – but it is still startling what people will do when motive and opportunity present themselves, including those who supposedly dedicate themselves to improving people’s health and lives, not just profit and enrichment.
Some will get their comeuppance now, following this detailed investigation into 5,000 cases by NHS Protect – but the rest of us have to decide whether to blame the rules, or the rule-breakers.
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