You know my form in the futurology stakes. Caveat emptor.

But anyway, for what it's worth, the three consultations all 'due out this week' as of Tuesday seem unlikely to hit cyberspace this week as planned.

In particular, The Vuvuzela Of Rumour tells me that the 'freeing providers and economic regulation' consultation may limp out on Monday.

The 'commissioning 4 patients' consultation, thought by the BMA to be due by the end of next week, may or may not happen by then.

Is that specific enough for you?

The next consultation is on social care funding, and its website is here. Its terms of reference are here.

Andrew Dilnot is a very smart man indeed, who will make a first-rate chair. Doubtless his first task will be to trawl through all the previous comissionins on social care. He might find a couople of salutory links here.

Tight time-frame, for the end of July ...

The Health Secretary was in his element in front of the Health Select Committee yesterday, no? Detail, detail and more detail.

Good morning.

Today sees a plethora of new entries into the august ledger of Things That Are Not Surprising.

I accept that the effectiveness of swearing is in approximately inverse proportion to its frequency.

So I willl just say, "for gosh's sake" to this story in The Guardian, which suggests that a US private health insurance / maintenance organisation (UnitedHealth, of Simon Stevens fame), who have the slightest of footholds in the UK healthcare market, has done well in its last quarter.

A DH press release reveals that Dame Jo Williams, interim chair of the Care Quality Commission, has been chosen by Health Secretary Andrew Lansley as candidate to become the CQC's permanent chair.

She will now undergo a selection meeting with the Health Select Committee, who will then make a recommendation to the Health Secretary, which he will "carefullly consider" prior to finalising the app[ointment.

This is summary, notes, emerging. Uncorrected and then some. There are going to be a lot of typos. UPDATE: It seems to be on a loop here - don't know how long it stays live.

There is jacket-off 'mirroring' between HSC chair Stephen Dorrell and Andrew Lansley – like the Cameron-Clegg arm-touching on the steps of Downing Street.

Dorrell: “The session was actually envisaged before we knew the White Paper was going to be published.”

Good morning.

You may already have noticed that we have a fresh dispensation of Maynard Doctrine for your edification and entertainment. The good professor takes on incentives in the new model NHS. Do read it.

Evening, all.

David Brindle of The Guardian's well-spotted report of the latest private medical insurance figures from Laing and Buisson inspires me to get on with Part Two of the 'Competing For Business' bit. Part One appeared here.

That's interesting, if not very surprising.

Health Service Journal's Sally Gainsbury has been given a copy of BMA GPC chair Dr Laurence Buckman's email to GPs, which restates the BMA's belief that "wherever possible, GPs should ensure that NHS providers are the providers of choice".