15 Response Under Consideration

Independent sector NHS contract qualification

Recommendation

We recommend that if the government accepts any of the recommendations set out above, it should make arrangements to ensure that these are to be applicable across the whole of the independent sector's workload, where relevant, and not only to those patients covered by the NHS, insured patients and patients who have paid directly for their care, if they are to qualify for NHS contracted work.

Published Evidence Summary
The following publicly available evidence relates to this recommendation:
- In December 2021, the government did not accept this recommendation but stated it would be kept under review, citing concerns about proportionality and unintended consequences of extending all recommendations across the independent sector's full workload including self-pay patients (Government Response to the Paterson Inquiry, DHSC, December 2021).
- No subsequent change of position has been identified in published government documents to March 2026.
Sources
How was this evidence gathered?
Evidence searched by Claude (Anthropic) on 10 Apr 2026
Checked data held on this site (government responses, progress updates, independent evidence)
Jurisdiction
England
Response
Under Consideration
Under Consideration Department of Health and Social Care
16 Dec 2021

Not accepted but kept under review. Government concerned about proportionality and unintended consequences. NHS Standard Contract already requires providers to meet certain standards. CQC registration applies to all providers regardless of funding source. Government monitoring whether voluntary improvements by independent sector are sufficient or whether further measures needed. (Source: Government Response, December 2021)

Source
Inquiry Paterson Inquiry
Report Report of the Independent Inquiry into the Issues raised by Paterson 04 Feb 2020
View Source
Responsible Bodies
Department of Health and Social Care Primary
Themes & Tags
Healthcare indemnity regulation Patient safety governance Independent Sector NHS Contracts Standards
Recommendation age 6.3 yrs
Last formal update 1627 days ago