NHS to pay 100 private health care firms to treat patients The government and private companies, some of which already earn up to £200m a year each from NHS-funded work, defended the scheme, defended the scheme, saying it was an opportunity to provide new services. Some private firms, such as InHealth, Specsavers and Virgin Care have already taken advantage of the controversial extension of competition to establish new services, the Guardian reported. Earl Howe, the health minister, dismissed objections from the British Medical Association and the Royal College of GPs. "This is about offering patients more choice, control and driving up the quality of their care, and the idea that this will have a negative impact on health care and patients is nonsense," he said.