Health
NHS leaders warn of rising costs and quality concerns in private ADHD and autism care
The NHS Alliance warns that local health boards face spiraling spending and regulation gaps as patients use 'right to choose' policies to access non-NHS care.
The short version
- NHS Alliance leaders warn that autism and ADHD care faces potential chaos due to unregulated providers and rapidly escalating costs.
- Patients using the 'right to choose' policy to avoid long waitlists have driven a rapid expansion of private and charity providers.
- Local health boards report wide price variations and difficulties monitoring care quality, partly because assessment-only providers do not require Care Quality Commission registration.
- The UK government stated that an independent review will be published soon to establish a national approach for autism, ADHD, and mental health services.
Key facts
- The NHS Alliance reported that local health boards face large cost variations for similar services, with one board charged between £300 and £3,000.[BBC News]
- One health board experienced a tenfold cost increase in a single year, reaching £1.5 million a month, while another saw annual spending rise from £4 million to £30 million over two years.[BBC News]
- Unlike routine medical operations, non-NHS autism and ADHD services rely on guide prices rather than fixed tariffs.[BBC News]
- Providers that only conduct assessments are not required to register with the Care Quality Commission.[BBC News]
- One local health board reported working with 48 distinct providers, quadrupling its provider count over two years.[BBC News]
What remains uncertain
- The exact timing, findings, and specific policy changes of the government's promised independent review remain unannounced.[BBC News]
Sources
- NHS bosses warn of chaos in ADHD and autism careBBC News - Top Stories