The London, UK-based Observer newspaper claimed that Plano, Texas-based EDS had withdrawn its bid for a 150m pounds ($240m) deal to manage the NHS’ appointment booking system, although it remains in the hunt for two larger contracts. Both EDS and the NHS refused to confirm or deny the claim when contacted by ComputerWire.
Last month, US federal IT services provider Lockheed Martin pulled out of the bidding process due to what is believed to be a reluctance to accept the stringent performance targets and penalty terms demanded of suppliers. The projects are being overseen by NHS IT Tsar Richard Grainger who has been tasked with ensuring that they run more smoothly than other high-profile UK government IT initiatives such as the Passport Office’s processing system and the Inland Revenue’s tax credit system, which attracted heavy criticism.
NHS spokesperson Lisa Ward told us that the organization expected to announce the successful bidders for the contracts within the next three to four weeks. Other companies in the running include IBM Corp, Accenture Ltd, Fujitsu Services and SchlumbergerSema.
Source: ComputerWire
