The compensation bill for NHS blunders has soared with some London trusts doubling the amount paid out to patients.
The total paid in damages to patients last year was £172 million — or £470,000 of taxpayers’ money a day. It is a rise from £166 million the year before. The actual amount paid out is even higher — more than £200 million — when legal fees and court costs are taken into account.
This article was first published in The Evening Standard on 12.9.2013