Health and Social Care Service Delivery Assessment Answer

(a) Recent Developments in the Financial and Legal Environment

Financial Environment of Health and social care

The recent developments in this environment include the Better Care Fund Policy for 2023 to 2025. Previously, this policy development is important to support individuals to live healthy, autonomous, and dignified lives via joining up social and healthcare services absolutely around the individuals. However, the current development of policy aims to facilitate individuals to stay secure, autonomous, and well at home for a long. Also, it aims to offer individuals the right care, at the right place and time. Besides, recently, the UK government has established its new plan for adult social care reform. It entails a lifetime cap on the amount each one in the nation might require to spend on their personal care (Gov.UK 2023).

Legal/ Regulatory Environment of Health and social care

In view of the Covid-19 pandemic, the UK nation has amended the potentials in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 that presently permit the State Secretary to indemnify non-profit establishments involved in the sustenance of healthcare and social care services. In recent developments, the present powers are enlarged to enable direct payments to be done to any establishments that are involved in the area of healthcare services, irrespective of how these are financed. Nevertheless, this bill might not advise in what situations the potentials can be utilized, or what situations or procedures might be linked to any fiscal support. Rather, this potential might serve as a lawful basis for forthcoming policy schemes. This law further establishes numerous situations wherein the State Secretary can delegate such strength to others specifically Special Health Authorities (Department of Health & Social Care 2023). Other major development can be seen in UK medical devices law reforms. Previously, most of the regulation of medical devices in the nation originates from the EU legislation. Since Jan 2022, there were variations in the manner medical devices are put on the marketplace. The Medicines and Medical Devices Act 2021 offered the government the strength to change the Medical Devices Regulations 2002. In recent times, MHRA (Medical and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency) has scheduled to introduce new medical device laws in the nation. Moreover, the main aim of MHRA will be to develop a forthcoming regime for medicinal devices that facilitated refined patient safety; close alignment with global ideal practices; more responsive and flexible regulations of such devices; and higher transparency of regulatory decisions (UK Parliament 2023).

(b) Alternative Funding Options for Health and Social Care Sector

The PFI funding option facilitates private sector innovations and they enable certain threats to be better handled by transferring them to the private sector. This is a preferred method of funding since it avoids the outlay of massive, one-off, and upfront payments and does not reflect in the government’s accounts as enhanced public borrowing. This option usually relieves the government of this burden via partnerships with the private sector to provide funds for health and care services (Thillainathan and Cheong 2019).

Hypothecated Tax

Such a funding option implies a dedicated tax to fund social care services. It can be said that social insurance is a major form of hypothecation utilized globally. This approach to funding is associated with the manner in which social care funding is produced, however; might not figure out the nature and scope of the government’s offer on social care. The benefits of this approach typically are in the form of accountability and transparency. When taxpayers might see where their tax is going, they might be superiorly capable of evaluating proposed tax variations. Moreover, this funding option helps to overcome the present funding crisis in the nation. Also, it assists to end the cycle of the bust and boom in financing which is a repetitive issue over decades. Besides, earmarking might secure resources to finance health and social care services from being spent in other areas. The know-how that the capital paid on taxes might go directly to certain required services might assist to lessen the dissatisfaction of the population with a surge in taxes (Lu et al. 2021).

Single Budget for Health and Social Care

This approach might imply bringing health and social care financing collectively into a joint budget at the nationwide and local levels. This financing option will be helpful to facilitate the integration of health and social care entailing joint commission, and aligned entitlement. Moreover, it offers certain evidence of superior outcomes for patients. Moreover, the integrated decisions across paths might refine resilience and sustainability. There is a clear single line of accountability in this financing option. It might develop on certain current efforts such as the Better Care Fund and more. It is also a much easy option for the public to understand (Wenzel et al. 2018).

Choice of Ideal Funding Option for Health and Social Care

From the above discussion of alternative funding options, it can be said that the best funding choice for health and social care will be PFI since it can enable the private funding of investments by National Health Services (NHS) trusts in the public-private partnership, with the predicted goals to harness competition and effectiveness, and growing accountability. Some of the benefits of this funding choice entail surged effectiveness in service provisions, lessened public indebtedness and expenditure, superior value for money, and enabled effectual risk transfer from the public sector to private businesses.

References

Department of Health & Social Care 2023. Health and care bill: provision of social care services - financial assistance (provider payments). [Online] Available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/health-and-care-bill-factsheets/health-and-care-bill-provision-of-social-care-services-financial-assistance-provider-payments Accessed on 29 April 2023

Gov.UK 2023. Better care fund policy framework 2023 to 2025. [Online] Available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/better-care-fund-policy-framework-2023-to-2025 Accessed on 29 April 2023

Lu, H., Burge, P. and Sussex, J., 2021. Measuring public preferences between health and social care funding options. Journal of choice modelling , 38 , p.100266.

Thillainathan, R. and Cheong, K.C., 2019. Malaysian public-private partnerships-incentivising private sector participation or facilitating rent-seeking?. Malaysian Journal of Economic Studies , 56 (2), pp.177-200.

UK Parliament 2023. Medical technology regulations and the NHS. [Online] Available at https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cdp-2023-0077/ Accessed on 29 April 2023

Wenzel, L., Bennett, L., Bottery, S., Murray, R. and Sahib, B., 2018. Approaches to social care funding. Health Foundation working paper .

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