The economics of specialist and general practitioner maternity units.

The roles of general practitioner and specialist maternity units are increasingly being debated with reference to resources and the need for savings in the NHS. Unfortunately, many of the economic issues involved are frequently misunderstood. On the basis of a study of maternity care in one Health Board area in Scotland, we present an example of the type of economic data which are needed to make policy decisions on resource allocation in hospital maternity care. Differences between the two unit types are presented in terms of their unit costs, their cost structures and their inpatient cost profiles.