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Tue 06 Jun 2007Inequity of for-profit healthcareWhen it comes to the formation of a government, one issue matters more than all the others. It is a policy most closely associated with the Progressive Democrats.That party's unique selling point was the provision of massive public subsidies for the building of private, for-profit hospitals on the grounds of public hospitals. The PDs got 800 votes in Clare, 193 votes in Dublin Central, 749 votes in Dublin North-East, 474 votes in Dublin South-Central, 296 votes in Mayo, 634 votes in Tipperary North, 364 votes in Tipperary South.