Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of cross-charging in reducing bed-blocking; and if he will make a statement.

The Department consulted on changes to delayed discharge processes, including arrangements for the National Health Service to claim reimbursement for any delays attributed to a local authority, as part of its broader consultation on the draft regulations and statutory guidance underpinning Part 1 of the Care Act 2014.

The responses to the consultation indicated that, whilst reimbursement arrangements may have a role to play, the focus should be on better integration between health and social care and the development of mechanisms such as the Better Care Fund to achieve this, and that reimbursement should be permissive rather than mandatory. As a result, new provisions are laid under the Care Act 2014.

The £5.3 billion Better Care Fund will support areas to join up health and social care and to change the way that services are delivered, and includes a strong focus on reducing the number of unnecessary days spent by people in hospital.