Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 24
24
Rejected
NHS England agreed that the hospice sector is fundamentally in financial distress and that there...
Recommendation
NHS England agreed that the hospice sector is fundamentally in financial distress and that there is a need to move quickly to resolve and fix the problems. But it stressed the need to avoid perpetuating problems, such as supporting a provider delivering substandard care.54 NHS England wrote to us after the session to reiterate that the development of the Modern Service Framework is their immediate action to address the fundamental issues in palliative and end-of-life care.55 However, we are concerned that only after the framework is published in autumn 2026 will new payment mechanisms be produced, taking more time to implement.56 Wider value of independent hospices
Government response summary AI-generated
The government explicitly disagrees with the committee's recommendation for faster action on new payment mechanisms, reiterating that these will be considered as part of the Modern Service Framework. They state it is not their role to make individual plans for independent hospices, but believe the MSF will aid long-term sustainability by moving away from existing funding models.
Summary of the government's response below — read the verbatim text to verify.
Government Response
Rejected
HM Government · verbatim extract
Rejected
5.5 The government disagrees with the Committee’s recommendation: 5.6 It is not for the government to make individual plans for each independent hospice. The government and NHS England will consider contracting and commissioning arrangements, including that of independent hospices, as part of our MSF. By supporting ICBs to commission strategically, we can move away from grant and block contract models. In the long term, this will aid sustainability and help hospices’ ability to plan ahead.
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