§ Miss McIntoshTo ask the Secretary of State for Health whether, with regard to bed blocking, local authority social service departments will be penalised if a patient in hospital is awaiting a place in a home of their choice. [64458]
§ Jacqui SmithThe new approach we have proposed is about putting in place the right incentives to ensure people are able to leave hospital as soon as treatment is completed and it is safe for them to do so. Local authorities and the national health service will need to develop more appropriate settings than an acute hospital ward for patients to await a place in a home of their choice. We will be consulting on the details of the charging system later in the summer.