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NHS England’s consultation to limit access to 17 procedures – why we should respond

NHSE is going to severely restrict access to 17 procedures on the NHS: four interventions that ‘should not be routinely commissioned, because they are ineffective or have been superseded by a safer alternative; with patients only able to access such treatments where they successfully make an Individual Funding Request’; and 13 interventions that ‘should only be commissioned or performed in specific circumstances where they have been proved to be clinically effective and specific criteria are met’.

NHSE is explicit that this is the start of a more widescale project:

We intend to make this a much wider, on-going programme, subject to making

sufficient progress in the first phase. We will consult on further interventions in

phase two, which will be launched in the new year. We will keep the list under

periodic review as the evidence base grows in future years. Phase two will also

include specialised services, which are commissioned by NHS England. [Evidence-Based Interventions: Consultation Document page 12, Section 14]

Please respond to let NHSE know your views

NHSE aims to save £200m per year – less than 0.2% of the NHS budget – and plans to build on this with numerous future restrictions to NHS care.

Even if this ‘consultation’ is flawed (the practice is already widespread) and motivation is financially-driven, it is still worth doing the survey – making the political point that the proposals have not gone unopposed.

It would also help if KONP members wrote letters to the press about it. The general public has little or no idea that this is happening.

Reading

See KONP co-chair/HCT Editor John Lister’s lead article in July’s HCT paper: NHS England plan to exclude treatments

More in KONP’s guidance

The consultation runs till 28 September 2018 – please complete NHSE’s survey

All you need is here – and you don’t have to answer every question:

Tony O’Sullivan