The Health and Social Care Secretary, Steve Barclay, claims that patients will have quicker access to treatment and lifesaving diagnostic tests, close to home, through the launch of a new Elective Recovery Taskforce and approval of 19 one-stop-shops for tests, checks and scans.
The NHS has made progress in tackling the COVID-19 backlogs. It’s virtually eliminated waits of over two years for treatment – the first target in the Elective Recovery Plan. It’s also reduced the number of people waiting 18 months for treatment by almost 60% in one year. The taskforce aims to help deliver on the remaining targets, including eliminating 18-month waits by April 2023 and waits of longer than a year by March 2025.
Health and Social Care Secretary, Steve Barclay, said: "The NHS is facing an unprecedented challenge to tackle COVID backlogs. Hardworking staff have made strong progress but I want to turbocharge our current plans to bust the backlog and help patients get the treatment they need.
"The taskforce will look at sensible steps to utilise all existing capacity to slash waiting lists while ensuring the NHS always remains free at the point of use."
The taskforce will be chaired by Health Minister, Will Quince, and made up of academics and experts from the NHS and independent sector to advise the Government on ways to turbocharge NHS recovery from the pandemic, reduce waiting times for patients and eliminate waits for routine care of over a year by 2025.
Experts will focus on how the NHS can utilise existing capacity in the independent sector to cut the backlog. The taskforce will bring together a group of experts to work on a series of recommendations which will be put to the Government early next year on how the NHS can better commission the independent sector, supporting the NHS as it pulls out all the stops to tackle the COVID-19 backlogs. The taskforce will look to improve communication and collaboration between the NHS and independent sector, clearly setting out what theatres, beds and other settings (such as outpatients) are available in the independent sector.
