Speaking to CYP Now, Professor Terence Stephenson warned that measures in the Health and Social Care bill threaten joint working.
"If you are a child with Down's syndrome or cerebral palsy, you need a lot of input from different people," he explained. "You need paediatricians, physiotherapists, speech therapists, geneticists, and sometimes a children's heart or glands specialist.
"At the moment you would get that all-in-one package, ideally from one health centre or hospital. The big concern is that when you introduce competition you tend to get less collaboration, and it may be that children can't get that joined-up service."
He added that private companies would see little reason to invest in providing care for children with long-term conditions.
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