The long awaited White Paper Equity and Excellence: liberating the NHS launched yesterday has been proclaimed as ‘the most radical overhaul of the NHS since its creation in 1948′.
The White Paper confirmed that primary care trusts and strategic health authorities will be scrapped by 2013. Responsibility for commissioning will pass to GP Consortia under an NHS Commissioning Board whilst local authorities will become responsible for assuming PCTs public health functions and leading the integration of health and social care at a local level.
Although much of the detail of the proposals has yet to be finalised the White Paper makes one thing abundantly clear: the impetus on integration and partnership working between the NHS, social care and public health is a top priority and the need for the NHS and local organisations to build partnerships to manage these service changes now and make the NHS a ‘truly world class service’ just stepped up a gear.
Posted by Emily Birkett
0121 237 3934
ebirkett@brownejacobson.com
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Tags: local authorities, NHS, Public Sector
