Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has plans to require Integrated Care Boards to provide regular public updates on the status of paused Right to Choose pathways.

Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for planning and commissioning services to meet the needs of their local populations, including making decisions about how best to manage demand and capacity within available resources. Where an ICB has taken a decision to pause or manage activity within a Right to Choose pathway, it is for that ICB to determine and apply any local prioritisation criteria, taking account of clinical need and patient safety. It is the responsibility of the local system to decide whether to publish criteria, and to ensure that patients, families, and the public are communicated with clearly and provided with appropriate information.

NHS England provides guidance and oversight to ICBs to support them in meeting their statutory duties, including in relation to patient choice. The Government is committed to patients having the right to choose their provider when referred to consultant-led treatment, or to a mental health professional, for their first appointment as an outpatient. Patients’ right to choose is set out in legislation and no changes are being made to this legal right. Further information on the choices available for patients can be found on the NHS Choice framework, which is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-nhs-choice-framework