§ Mr. MaplesTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if the new primary care commissioning groups will be able to use their budgets to purchase specialist services from independent providers. [41542]
§ Mr. MilburnExisting guidance to the National Health Service, issued for the 1998–99 commissioning round, is that health authorities and NHS trusts should explore the scope to make maximum cost-effective use of local NHS capacity before contemplating recourse to private sector hospital provision. Where care is nonetheless commissioned from private hospitals, the reasons must be reported to the Regional Office of the NHS Executive.
In the White Paper The New NHS we promised to introduce new arrangements for commissioning specialised services for 1 April 1999. We have issued a draft guidance document for wide consultation, with responses due by 1 June 1998. Further guidance on Primary Care Groups will be issued in due course.