New Consultation
on Personal Health Budgets Launched Direct payments for healthcare
moved a step closer today with a new consultation launched by Care
Services Minister Phil Hope.
Personal health budgets are being piloted in primary care trusts
until 2012 – direct payments will form part of these. Personal
health budgets will help to create a more personalised NHS, by
giving people more choice and control over how money is spent on
their care.
The three ways that a personal health budget can work are:
· a notional budget held by a commissioner, such as their doctor
or primary care trust;
· a budget managed on the individual’s
behalf by a third party, like a charity or User Trust; and
·
or a cash payment to an individual and managed by them (a
healthcare ‘direct payment’).
Trusts are already able to offer the first two options, which do
not involve giving money directly to individuals. The consultation
seeks views on the rules for making direct payments as well as
proposals for setting up and evaluating direct payment pilots. It
will run until 8 January 2010. The power to make direct payments
is in the Health Bill currently before parliament and is expected
to receive Royal ascent next month. This consultation will inform
the regulations and guidance to make direct payments happen.
Care Services Minister Phil Hope said:
“There are some really inspiring stories already from people
whose lives have been transformed by personal budgets - they get
more choice and control over their own care. By making direct
payments available in healthcare I know many more people will feel
the benefits. We want to make sure we get this right and I want
everyone to have their say to make sure we do.”
Case study – benefits of personal health
budgets
Laura
Laura was diagnosed with a spinal tumor around 2 years ago and
subsequently required significant neurosurgery. The tumor was
largely removed but the operation left her managing life with
chronic pain and incontinence.
Laura’s position was made doubly difficult because her pain
relieving drug therapy had side effects of drowsiness and
disorientation which affected her quality of life. She also had
some sessions of hydrotherapy and massage and found both of these
to be more effective without the side effects of the drugs.
However, both these treatments were limited. Laura faced the
prospect of increasing pain as well as the possibility of further
expensive drug treatments that would further affect her quality of life.
The Trust decided to try a different approach and Laura
volunteered herself to the personal health budget pilot. The costs
of her drug treatments were identified and Laura is now using the
money to buy more extensive massage and hydrotherapy sessions
privately and long term. Her case manager holds the funding for
her and she herself specifies the nature of the sessions she
receives. She has found her pain to be much less since taking up
the new therapies.
Notes to Editors
The consultation on Personal Health Budget direct payments starts
today and runs for 12 weeks, until 8 January 2010. It is available
at: http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Consultations/index.htm
Case study ‘Laura’s’ name has been changed to protect her
identity.
Earlier this year seventy sites from across the country were
granted provisional pilot status. On 8 October Phil Hope announced
that twenty of these sites will be evaluated in depth. . The sites
will form an important wider learning community that will help
test the effects of personal health budgets on a broad range of
people.
Additional information on personal health budgets can be found at
http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Healthcare/Highqualitycareforall/DH_090018
Lord Darzi’s Next Stage Review ‘High Quality Care for All’
announced that from 2009 there will be a pilot, building on
experience with individual budgets in social care, to test
personal health budgets as a way of giving people greater control
over the services they use.
For more examples of how people can benefit from personal health
budgets, call the Department of Health press office on 0207 210 5221.
Contacts:
Department of Health
Phone: 020 7210 5221
NDS.DH@coi.gsi.gov.uk