Reverse e auctions

A reverse e auction recently took place in London whereby care homes were asked to participate in an e auction where they had to bid down their prices for the provision of continuing helathcare and palliative care in care homes. This was after the care homes had already submitted tender prices against a specific quality specification. Have others come across such auctions? We do not believe this is a means to ensure sustainable quality of care and does not treat people with dignity but as objects of a bidding process that takes no account of individual needs