Health and Social Care Bill

178A:Clause 73, page 96, line 30, at end insert— ““(5) An NHS commissioner shall be entitled to undertake a review (““a Commissioning Review””) of all or any part of the health services that the NHS commissioner considers are reasonably required in order to discharge its functions under this Act, and, upon completion of such a Commissioning Review, an NHS Commissioner shall be entitled to determine that the most appropriate way to deliver all or any part of such services shall be through the conclusion of arrangements with one or more health services bodies or one or more NHS Foundation Trusts. (6) NHS Commissioners shall, when conducting a Commissioning Review, have regard to the following factors— (a) the need for NHS services to be provided in a way that is economic, efficient and effective; (b) the need to commission services in a way that maintains or improves the quality of the services; (c) the need to commission health services in a way that promotes the integration of health and social care services; (d) the need for health care services provided for the purposes of the NHS to be provided in an integrated way where this will— (i) improve the quality of those services (including the outcomes that are achieved from their provision) or the efficiency of their provision, (ii) reduce inequalities between persons with respect to their ability to access those services, and (iii) reduce inequalities between persons with respect to the outcomes achieved for them by the provision of those services; (e) the likely future demand for health care services; (f) the desirability of patient choice. (7) An NHS commissioner shall be entitled, as part of any Commissioning Review, to seek expressions of interest from health services bodies or from NHS Foundation Trusts which may have an interest in providing such services, and shall be entitled to undertake such processes as it shall consider appropriate to determine which of such bodies is able most appropriately to provide any such services. (8) A Commissioning Review and decisions made following a Commissioning Review to make arrangements with one or more health services bodies or NHS Foundation Trusts shall not constitute anti-competitive behaviour for the purposes of this or any other Act. (9) The Public Contracts Regulations 2006 shall not impose any obligations on an NHS commissioner which undertakes a Commissioning Review or makes decisions to make arrangements with one or more health services bodies or NHS Foundation Trusts following a Commissioning Review. (10) Regulations under this section shall not impose obligations on an NHS commissioner undertaking a Commissioning Review. (11) The NHS Commissioning Board may, after consultation with Monitor, publish guidance to NHS Commissioners concerning Commissioning Reviews. (12) The National Health Service Act 2006 shall be amended by adding the following after section 9(4)(r)— ““(s) An NHS Foundation Trust””.””