Interim measures

Accepted in principle.
The Care Quality Commission already has the power of immediate intervention where it considers that the quality of services to be insufficient, or the safety of service users is at risk. The NHS Trust Development Authority and Monitor each have powers to intervene and direct change where it is considered necessary.
The Department of Health will consult shortly on new regulations which will make clearer the fundamental standards of care and enable enforcement against them without a prior warning notice. The Care Quality Commission will consult on a new enforcement policy for all sectors so that these new regulations can be enforced effectively when they come into force, subject to Parliament, during 2014.
In Patients First and Foremost the Government announced that the Care Quality Commission, Monitor and the Trust Development Authority would establish a single failure regime to provide clarity while retaining the Care Quality Commission and Monitor as separate regulators with defined responsibilities across health and social care. To support this, specific clauses within the Care Bill lay the framework for a simple, flexible process for tackling quality failures in trusts and to provide the Care Quality Commission with the powers to issue a new warning notice to trusts where there are systematic failures in the quality of services requiring improvement.
To address failures of quality where providers are unable to resolve problems on their own, the Care Quality Commission will be able to prompt intervention from Monitor (for NHS Foundation Trusts) or the NHS Trust Development Authority (for NHS Trusts). If the Chief Inspector finds a serious breach of health and safety requirements, the Care Quality Commission would refer the matter immediately to the Health and Safety Executive, which in serious cases could decide to prosecute.
The Care Quality Commission plans to introduce this programme in November 2013 through a protocol setting out how it, Monitor and the NHS Trust Development Authority will coordinate their respective powers of intervention. This will be underpinned by legislation when the Care Bill completes its Parliamentary passage.

Per the response in Hard Truths, the Government introduced the special measures regime.

The CQC’s enforcement policy including how it uses its enforcement powers is set out on its website.

Under the new special measures regime, the NHS Trust Development Authority and Monitor are now able to intervene at providers which the Care Quality Commission judge to be providing poor quality care as part of their new inspection programme. This includes partnering the failing provider with a high-performing buddy, the appointment of a dedicated Improvement Director at the trust as well as other targeted interventions to ensure rapid improvements where failings have been identified.

This recommendation was accepted in principle by the Government.

In the January 2014 Hard Truths report, the Government said that the Care Quality Commission already had the power of immediate intervention and the NHS Trust Development Authority and Monitor each had power to intervene and direct change when considered necessary.

The Government referred to the power of the Care Quality Commission to take enforcement without prior warning notice in respect of breaches of certain fundamental standards.

In the February 2015 Culture Change report, the Government also referred to the new special measures regime, which it said allowed the NHS Trust Development Authority and Monitor to intervene at providers which the Care Quality Commission judged to be providing poor quality care.