National Voices raises concerns over proposed QOF changes

Healthcare improvement scheme has produced benefits and changes should not be rushed through without careful consideration

Current proposals to change the way that the GP Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) works should be carefully considered, according to National Voices the umbrella organisation established by and for the voluntary sector.
National Voices welcomes the consultation, and acknowledges that QOF has been instrumental in raising the promotion of key health interventions at a national level and has ensured that many people have received the care they might otherwise have missed.
National Voices is concerned that some of the proposals have not been thought through and although QOF may be considered unwieldy, it has not been made clear why the current system should be replaced rather than improved.
Of particular concern is the proposal to set QOF targets locally and the proposed role of NICE in the new system. The timeframe is also of concern as it does not to take into account the time for transferring to a new system and appears to have made the consultation process irrelevant.

David Pink, chief executive, National Voices said: “We remain to be convinced of the benefits of allowing an element of the QOF to be set locally, and would rather that Local Enhanced Services be better promoted and used to respond to and react to differences at the local level of primary care need. National Voices is also concerned that the proposal to handover the management of QOF to NICE will result in complications to what is currently a UK-wide process.”

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Notes to editors:
National Voices is the new umbrella organisation established by and for the national voluntary organisations representing users of health and social care in England to give them a stronger voice in policy-making. National Voices works with policy-makers in Westminster and Whitehall to make sure that the voices of patients, carers and service users are heard and that their diverse needs and preferences are genuinely placed at the heart of policy development. In doing this National Voices will ensure that the views of the people who use health and social care services are heard by the people who shape and provide those services.

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