DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
News Release issued by The Government News Network on 22 July 2008
The Health and
Social Care Act 2008, which will enhance the safety and quality of
care and improve public health, has received Royal Assent.
The Health and Social Care Act 2008:
- Establishes the Care Quality Commission, a new health and adult
social care regulator with tough powers to inspect, investigate
and intervene where care providers are failing to meet safety and
quality requirements, including hygiene standards. In performing
its functions, the main objective of the Care Quality Commission
will be to protect and promote the health, safety and welfare of
people who use health and social care services;
- Reforms professional regulation to give patients and the public
more confidence in the care they receive from health
professionals. This includes creating a new adjudicator to make
independent decisions about whether individual health
professionals should remain in practice so the public can have
full confidence in the transparency and independence of medical
regulation. In addition, Responsible Officers will be appointed
to oversee the conduct and performance of doctors at a local level;
- Updates existing public health protection legislation to
provide a comprehensive set of public health measures to help
prevent and control the spread of serious diseases caused by
infection and contamination;
- Allows for cash grants to be made to pregnant women in the
final stage of pregnancy, recognising the importance of a healthy
diet and the additional costs expectant mothers face at this time;
- Strengthens the protection of vulnerable people using
residential care by ensuring that any independent sector care home
that provides accommodation together with nursing or personal care
on behalf of a local authority is subject to the Human Rights Act.
The Care Quality Commission will bring together the expertise of
the Healthcare Commission, Commission for Social Care Inspection
and the Mental Health Act Commission, meaning a more consistent
approach to regulation at a time when services are increasingly
crossing traditional health and social care boundaries. The
interests of these three areas must be represented on the board.
The Commission will have a responsibility to set out how it will
engage with and promote awareness among service users, and to
report on this annually. The Commission will reduce the burden of
inspection on the frontline reducing the level of duplication and
bureaucracy faced by hospitals and care homes as well as creating
a level playing field across the public and private sectors.
Health Minister Ben Bradshaw said:
"This Act will help to protect the health, safety and
welfare of those who use health and social care services. The
independent regulator, the Care Quality Commission, will have
tough new powers to inspect and take action to protect patients
and service users. In addition, professional regulation will be
reformed, meaning patients can have confidence that the care they
receive will be safe."
ENDS
Notes to Editors
1. The Health and Social Care Bill was introduced to Parliament
on 15 November 2007 and was granted Royal Assent on Monday 21 July 2008.
2. It is expected that the changes will start coming into
operation from September 2008.