The private company that owns two Islington GP surgeries has sold them without waiting for consent from the NHS – a clear breach of the rules under which they agreed to operate when they took them over two years ago. AT Medics, which operates the Mitichison Road Surgery and Hanley Road Primary Care Centre was sold by its owners, Centene, the US insurance giant, on 28 December, 2023, without the consent of the North London Integrated Care Board (ICB). Ownership has been passed to T20 Osprey Midco Ltd, part of The HCRG Care Group, which took over NHS contracts held by Virgin Care, a company founded by the billionaire business magnate Sir Richard Branson.

The NHS has said it is now considering its next steps, since “under the terms of the APMS contracts, providers may not undergo a change of control
without the NHS’s prior authorisation”.

We have written to the ICB asking them to taking this breach with the utmost seriousness and cancel the contracts involved. They responded:

“NHS North Central London Integrated Care Board (NCL ICB) is taking this matter seriously. The NCL ICB Primary Care Committee is responsible for taking decisions in relation to the Change of Control. Work will need to be completed before options can be presented to the committee. The committee will consider the options available and make a decision in due course. At this stage no decisions have been made and it would be inappropriate for us to predetermine or pre-empt the decision of the committee.”

They included this statement outlining the situation and a link to Frequently Asked Questions.

The story has been covered in the Islington Tribune.

The ICB is still asking for comments on the change of ownership on its website and we encourage everyone to respond.

We will continue to monitor what happens so watch this space.