The Health and Care Act 2022 gives us new responsibilities to assess whether integrated care systems (ICSs) are meeting the needs of their local populations. The methodology we will use to carry out our ICS assessments is subject to government approval under the Health and Care Act 2022.
Following successful piloting work in 2023, we initially paused this work in early 2024 to refine our approach to ICS assessments. This delay was further impacted by the General Election in July 2024 and the Dash review in October 2024, which recommended continuing a pause on this work.
Following uncertainty as a result of the recent government announcement that NHS England will be brought back under the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) along with reductions planned for ICBs, DHSC has withdrawn its request for a proposal from CQC on the future of ICS assessment activity. This work will pause for at least six months which will allow us to focus on our 4 priorities and 5 foundational improvements. We will continue to engage with DHSC during this period and will review our plans along with the new government reforms including the 10-year health plan.
Considering how systems are working together continues to be a priority for CQC and we will continue to use our independent voice to highlight this. We have also developed in partnership a new self-assessment and improvement framework for ICSs to address health inequalities.