In 2005, the Delaware Department of Correction signed a contract with the company Correctional Medical Services (CMS) to provide medical services to inmates in state prisons. The promise of cost savings quickly evaporated, and the state was left with low quality healthcare for inmates. Inmate health deteriorated under the new contractor and several deaths resulted from lack of adequate medical care. The contractor’s performance has forced the state to spend extra time and money associated with litigation arising from the substandard care.
Today the Port of Wilmington faces the same fate… as it is about to be privatized by a large oil/gas conglomerate: Kinder Morgan
LET US BRIEFLY REVIEW THE MYTHS REGARDING PRIVATIZATION.
Myth #1: Privatization saves money.
The Truth: Privatization often raises costs for the public and governments.
Myth #2: Private companies do a better job than the public sector.
The Truth: Many examples show declines in service quality under private contractors.
Myth #3: Privatization allows governmental entities to better anticipate and control budgetary costs.
The Truth: Cost estimates are extremely unreliable and privatization can cause result in unforeseen budgetary consequences.
Myth #4: Privatization allows governmental entities more administrative flexibility.
The Truth: Privatization requires substantial administrative resources for monitoring and oversight.
Myth #5: The public still maintains control over a privatized asset or service and the government retains the ultimate ability to make related public policy decisions.
The Truth: Privatization can bind the hands of policymakers for years, allowing private companies significant control of a privatized asset or service and the ability to dictate important policy decisions.
Myth #6: If anything goes wrong, the government can easily fire the contractor or adjust the contract.
The Truth: Reversing privatization involves huge costs and service interruptions.
Myth #7: Companies are chosen for privatization contracts on the merits, not based on political or financial connections.
The Truth: Government for profit opens doors to unscrupulous behavior by politicians and businesses.
These were compiled by the group In the Public Interest and if you wish further information or explanation, I would suggest a deeper reading here.
The one truth coming out of all privatization plans, is that privatization winds up costing taxpayers more, as well as disrupt the services we need to survive.
kavips 
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December 29, 2012 at 12:34 am
Norinda
From In The Public Interest,
The American Legislative Exchange Council has been a major force in pushing for the privatization of public services and assets. This organization, which boasts of having more than 2,000 members, brings together state lawmakers, corporations, and conservative think tanks in an effort to push an agenda of “free markets, limited government, federalism, and individual liberty.”1 As ALEC succinctly laid out in its 2011 publication, State Budget Reform Toolkit, “policymakers should embrace privatization and the competitive contracting of government services.
This agenda directly benefits many of its corporate members, who hope to increase their revenues and profits by dismantling public services and taking over the work through lucrative government contracts.
As numerous privatization efforts show, handing over control of public functions to corporate entities can have disastrous results. In the quest to increase corporate profits, the quality of public services suffers, public costs may increase, and the ability
to provide meaningful oversight over our public structures is greatly compromised.
Any Delaware Politicians or Plutocrats members?