Press release: NHS Confederation response to Audit Commission report on payment by results

11 Oct 2005

The NHS Confederation, which represents more than 90 per cent of NHS organisations, has welcomed the key finding of today's Audit Commission report on Payment by Results that NHS bodies piloting the new NHS funding system are 'positive' about its potential impact.

Nigel Edwards, Director of Policy, said: "All the evidence from countries including Australia and Sweden which have introduced systems similar to Payment by Results is that it will ultimately lead to improvements in efficiency.

"The Audit Commission report makes clear that it is too early to make definitive judgements about its impact on the NHS but there is evidence that Payment by Results is providing the impetus to improve NHS organisations' information systems and that foundation trusts are increasing efficiency by reducing the length of time that patients spend in hospital."

The Audit Commission report includes a list of recommendations for the Department of Health to amend the current Payment by Results system, focusing on many of the areas that NHS Confederation members have expressed concerns about.

Nigel Edwards said: "We agree that the Department needs to develop a tariff for specialist services and to ensure a stable and workable tariff for non-elective, or emergency, care so that hospitals aren't penalised for working with their primary care colleagues to keep people out of hospital in the first place.

"We welcome the Audit Commission's recommendations for the Department of Health to develop both a strategy to address what happens if either NHS services or whole organisations fail and a framework to provide assurances about codes of behaviour for all NHS organisations under Payment by Results.
"And none of the potential benefits of Payment by Results will be realised unless there is a sustained investment in commissioning."

ENDS

Notes for editors

1. The NHS Confederation represents more than 90 per cent of the organisations that make up the NHS throughout the UK. Its members include the majority of NHS trusts, foundation trusts, primary care trusts and health authorities in England; trusts and local health boards in Wales; NHS boards and special boards in Scotland; and health and social service trusts and boards in Northern Ireland. 

Contact details

Contact Media Relations Manager Matt Akid on 020 7074 3306 or 07887 633344 or Media Officer Amy Darlington on 020 7074 3304 or 07767 770309 - out of hours please contact the on-call press officer on 07880 500726.

Back to media centre