Session 2010 - 12
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Other Bills before Parliament

Health and Social Care Bill


Health and Social Care Bill
Part 9 — Health and adult social care services: information
Chapter 2 — The Health and Social Care Information Centre

257

 

exercising functions in connection with the provision of such services or care

must, in providing those services or that care, have regard to the code.

264     

Information Register

The Information Centre must maintain and publish a register containing

descriptions of the information which has been obtained by virtue of this

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Chapter.

265     

Advice or guidance

(1)   

The Information Centre—

(a)   

may give advice or guidance to any person mentioned in subsection (2)

on any matter relating to the collection, analysis, publication or other

10

dissemination of information, and

(b)   

must, if requested to do so by the Secretary of State or the Board, give

advice or guidance on any such matter as may be specified in the

request to—

(i)   

the Secretary of State or (as the case may be) the Board;

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(ii)   

such other persons as may be specified in the request.

(2)   

Those persons are—

(a)   

the Secretary of State,

(b)   

the Board,

(c)   

any person who makes, or is proposing to make, a request under

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section 255,

(d)   

any health or social care body, and

(e)   

any person (including a devolved authority) who collects, or is

proposing to collect, information which relates to the provision of

health care or adult social care.

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(3)   

The Secretary of State must, at least once in any review period, exercise the

power under subsection (1)(b) by requesting the Information Centre to give the

Secretary of State advice about ways in which the burdens relating to the

collection of information imposed on health or social care bodies and other

persons may be minimised.

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(4)   

For the purposes of subsection (3) a review period is—

(a)   

the period of 3 years beginning with the day on which this section

comes into force, and

(b)   

each subsequent period of 3 years.

(5)   

A health or social care body to whom advice or guidance is given under this

35

section must have regard to the advice or guidance in exercising functions in

connection with the provision of health services or of adult social care in

England.

(6)   

A person, other than a public body, who provides health services, or adult

social care in England, pursuant to arrangements made with a public body

40

exercising functions in connection with the provision of such services or care

must, in providing those services or that care, have regard to any advice or

guidance given to the person under this section.

 
 

Health and Social Care Bill
Part 9 — Health and adult social care services: information
Chapter 2 — The Health and Social Care Information Centre

258

 

Functions: quality of health and social care information

266     

Assessment of quality of information

The Information Centre must from time to time—

(a)   

assess the extent to which information it collects pursuant to a direction

under section 254 or a request under 255 meets the information

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standards published under section 250 (so far as they are applicable),

and

(b)   

publish a record of the results of the assessment.

267     

Power to establish accreditation scheme

(1)   

Regulations may make provision for the establishment and operation of a

10

scheme for the accreditation of information service providers (“the

accreditation scheme”).

(2)   

The regulations may provide that the accreditation scheme is to be established

and operated by the Information Centre or such other person as the Secretary

of State may specify in the regulations (the “operator”).

15

(3)   

The regulations may, in particular, confer power on the operator—

(a)   

to establish the procedure for accrediting information service providers

under the scheme,

(b)   

to set the criteria to be met by a provider in order to be accredited (“the

accreditation criteria”),

20

(c)   

to keep an accreditation under the scheme under review, and

(d)   

to charge a reasonable fee in respect of an application for accreditation.

(4)   

The regulations may make provision requiring the operator—

(a)   

to publish details of the scheme, including, in particular, the

accreditation criteria,

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(b)   

to provide for the review of a decision to refuse an application for

accreditation, and

(c)   

to provide advice to applicants for accreditation with a view to

ensuring that they meet the accreditation criteria.

(5)   

In this section “information service provider” means any person other than a

30

public body who provides services involving the collection, analysis,

publication or other dissemination of information in connection with the

provision of health services or of adult social care in England.

Functions: other

268     

Database of quality indicators

35

(1)   

Regulations may make provision conferring functions on the Information

Centre in connection with the establishment, maintenance and publication of a

database of quality indicators in relation to the provision of health services and

of adult social care in England.

(2)   

The regulations may, in particular, make provision about—

40

(a)   

the persons who may propose a quality indicator for inclusion in the

database,

 
 

Health and Social Care Bill
Part 9 — Health and adult social care services: information
Chapter 2 — The Health and Social Care Information Centre

259

 

(b)   

the giving of advice and guidance by the Information Centre to such

persons in relation to such a proposal,

(c)   

the assessment and approval of quality indicators proposed for

inclusion in the database by such person as the Secretary of State or the

Board may direct, and

5

(d)   

the inclusion in the database of guidance about how providers may

demonstrate performance measured against the quality indicators.

(3)   

In this section a “quality indicator” means a factor by reference to which

performance in the provision of services or care can be measured.

269     

Power to confer functions in relation to identification of GPs

10

(1)   

Regulations may make provision conferring functions on the Information

Centre in connection with the verification of the identity of general medical

practitioners for purposes connected with the health service in England.

(2)   

In subsection (1) “general medical practitioners” means persons registered in

the General Practitioner Register kept by the General Medical Council.

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270     

Additional functions

(1)   

The Information Centre may do any of the following—

(a)   

acquire, produce, manufacture and supply goods,

(b)   

acquire land by agreement and manage and deal with land,

(c)   

supply accommodation to any person,

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(d)   

supply services to any person and provide new services,

(e)   

provide instruction for any person, and

(f)   

develop and exploit ideas and exploit intellectual property.

(2)   

But the Information Centre may exercise a power under subsection (1) only—

(a)   

if doing so involves, or is connected with, the collection, analysis,

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publication or other dissemination of information, and

(b)   

to the extent that its exercise does not to any significant extent interfere

with the performance by the Centre of any function under or by virtue

of any other provision of this or any other Act.

(3)   

The Information Centre may—

30

(a)   

charge for anything it does in the exercise of a power under

subsection (1), and

(b)   

calculate any such charge on the basis that it considers to be the

appropriate commercial basis.

271     

Arrangements with other bodies

35

(1)   

The Information Centre may arrange with any person or body to provide, or

assist in providing, any service which the Centre is required or authorised to

provide by virtue of this Chapter.

(2)   

The power under this section may be exercised on such terms as may be

agreed, including terms as to the making of payments by or to the Information

40

Centre.

 
 

Health and Social Care Bill
Part 9 — Health and adult social care services: information
Chapter 2 — The Health and Social Care Information Centre

260

 

272     

Failure by Information Centre to discharge any of its functions

(1)   

The Secretary of State may give a direction to the Information Centre if the

Secretary of State considers that—

(a)   

the Centre—

(i)   

is failing or has failed to discharge any of its functions, or

5

(ii)   

is failing or has failed properly to discharge any of its functions,

and

(b)   

the failure is significant.

(2)   

A direction under subsection (1) may direct the Information Centre to

discharge such of those functions, and in such manner and within such period

10

or periods, as may be specified in the direction.

(3)   

If the Information Centre fails to comply with a direction under subsection (1),

the Secretary of State may—

(a)   

discharge the functions to which it relates, or

(b)   

make arrangements for any other person to discharge them on the

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Secretary of State’s behalf.

(4)   

Where the Secretary of State exercises a power under subsection (1) or (3), the

Secretary of State must publish reasons for doing so.

(5)   

For the purposes of this section, a failure to discharge a function properly

includes a failure to discharge it consistently with what the Secretary of State

20

considers to be the interests of the health service in England or (as the case may

be) with what otherwise appears to the Secretary of State to be the purpose for

which it is conferred.

273     

Protection from personal liability

(1)   

Section 265 of the Public Health Act 1875 (which relates to the protection of

25

members and officers of certain authorities from personal liability) has effect as

if there were included in the authorities referred to in that section a reference

to the Information Centre.

(2)   

In its application to the Information Centre as provided for by subsection (1),

section 265 of that Act has effect as if any reference in that section to the Public

30

Health Act 1875 were a reference to this Act.

General and supplementary

274     

Powers of Secretary of State or Board to give directions

(1)   

Regulations may make provision conferring powers on the Secretary of State

or the Board to give directions—

35

(a)   

requiring a health or social care body to exercise such of the

Information Centre’s functions as may be specified;

(b)   

requiring the Centre or another health or social care body to exercise

such information functions of the Secretary of State or (as the case may

be) the Board as may be specified;

40

(c)   

requiring the Centre to exercise such of the information functions of

any health or social care body as may be specified;

(d)   

requiring the Centre to exercise such systems delivery functions of the

Secretary of State or (as the case may be) the Board as may be specified.

 
 

Health and Social Care Bill
Part 9 — Health and adult social care services: information
Chapter 2 — The Health and Social Care Information Centre

261

 

(2)   

A function required to be exercised by a direction given by the Secretary of

State or the Board by virtue of subsection (1) is subject to directions given by

the Secretary of State or (as the case may be) the Board about the exercise of the

function.

(3)   

A power conferred on the Secretary of State under subsection (1)(a) must

5

provide that a direction may be given in respect of a function of the

Information Centre only if the function relates to information which is of a

description prescribed in the regulations and—

(a)   

in respect of which the Secretary of State may give a direction under

section 254, or

10

(b)   

which the Secretary of State considers is information in respect of

which a mandatory request may be made under section 255.

(4)   

A power conferred on the Board under subsection (1)(a) must provide that a

direction may be given in respect of a function of the Information Centre only

if the function relates to information which is of a description prescribed in the

15

regulations and in respect of which the Board may give a direction under

section 254.

(5)   

A power conferred under subsection (1)(a) must provide that a direction must

include provision requiring the body in question to provide the Information

Centre with the information it needs to comply with the duty under section 264

20

(duty to publish information register).

(6)   

A power conferred on the Secretary of State under subsection (1)(d) must

provide that a direction may include provision about payments by the

Secretary of State to the Information Centre for things done in the exercise of

the function in respect of which the direction is given.

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(7)   

A power conferred on the Board under subsection (1)(d) must provide that a

direction must permit the Information Centre to charge the Board a reasonable

fee in respect of the cost of complying with the direction.

(8)   

A power conferred under subsection (1)(d) must provide that the giving of a

direction does not prevent the Secretary of State or (as the case may be) the

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Board from exercising the function in respect of which the direction is given.

(9)   

In this section—

“information function” means a function in relation to the collection,

analysis, publication or other dissemination of information;

“specified” means specified in a direction given under regulations made

35

under subsection (1);

“systems delivery function”—

(a)   

in relation to the Secretary of State, means a function of the

Secretary of State which is exercisable in relation to the

development or operation of information or communications

40

systems in connection with the provision of health services or of

adult social care in England;

(b)   

in relation to the Board, means a function of the Board which is

exercisable in relation to the development or operation of

information or communications systems in connection with the

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provision of NHS services.

 
 

 
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Revised 15 March 2012