Response to NHS England’s consultation on Integrated Care Providers

The national consultation, promised by NHS England after the JR4NHS judicial review, is currently underway. It ends on 26th October 2018.

NHSE has now dropped the term ‘accountable care organisation’, preferring instead ‘integrated care provider’ (ICP). But don’t be fooled by a change of wrapper.

The judicial review succeeded in forcing NHSE to retreat from its original radical intentions but major problems remain with what’s proposed.  NHSE is still pressing ahead without new primary legislation, and without ICPs having to be public NHS bodies.  

The claimants in the judicial review have now sent in their response to the consultation.

It’s necessarily detailed – but in summary it says that the revised proposals are seriously flawed:

  • They are organisationally absurd and bureaucratically wasteful. (paras 7,33)
  • It remains entirely obscure how the proposed contract would achieve integrated services for patients in practice. (15-19)
  • There are major problems in safeguarding public accountability (33-39) and the role of clinical commissioning groups (24-28) in the new arrangements.
  • Patients’ choice of GP is threatened (52,53) and the claimed provisions to ensure general patient choice are seriously deficient. (45-49)
  • The threat of creeping privatisation and charging remains, in spite of protestations to the contrary.  (19 ,58-62).

Responses to the consultation can be posted to The ICP Consultation Team, Area 2D NHS England,  Skipton House, 80 London Road, London SE1 6LH, or via NHSE’s website.