Health and Social Care Act 2008

The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (c 14) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

Health and Social Care Act 2008[1]
Long titleAn Act to establish and make provision in connection with a Care Quality Commission; to make provision about health care (including provision about the National Health Service) and about social care; to make provision about reviews and investigations under the Mental Health Act 1983; to establish and make provision in connection with an Office of the Health Professions Adjudicator and make other provision about the regulation of the health care professions; to confer power to modify the regulation of social care workers; to amend the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984; to provide for the payment of a grant to women in connection with pregnancy; to amend the functions of the Health Protection Agency; and for connected purposes.
Citation2008 c 14
Dates
Royal assent21 July 2008
History of passage through Parliament
Text of statute as originally enacted
Revised text of statute as amended

Synopsis

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The Act was created on 11 March 2009 with the following regulated activities:

  • provision of health care to patients by a National Health Service (NHS) Trust or NHS Foundation Trust.
  • provision of ambulance services, for transporting patients for the purpose of treatment by a NHS Trust or a NHS Foundation Trust.
  • provision of health care to patients by a Primary Care Trust.
  • management of NHS Blood and Transplant, including: supply of blood, supply of stem cells and bone marrow, supply of tissues for transplant or grafting and also the Donor Organs including the matching and allocation.

The Care Quality Commission has the responsibilities to ensure service providers are providing quality care when carrying on the regulated activities.

The Act makes further substantial revisions and repeals to the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984, by section 129,[2] and Schedule 11.[3] These have the effect of repealing, and replacing most of the provisions of Part 2 of the 1984 Act.

In summer 2021, it was proposed by the Second Johnson ministry to mandate that care home staff be required as a condition of employment to maintain COVID-19 vaccination status. On 13 July the House of Lords had poignant questions for Nadhim Zahawi MP, at the time the Minister for Business and Industry and also the Minister for COVID Vaccine Deployment at the DHSC. It was unclear to certain members of the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee just why and on what basis the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) (Amendment) (Coronavirus) Regulations 2021 proposed to regulate. Lord German said "we have consistently made clear our view that all key definitions and criteria on which decisions that might affect a person’s welfare or livelihood will be made, should be included in legislation and not in guidance which cannot be subjected to appropriate Parliamentary scrutiny or approval."[4]

Delegated legislation

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Section 170 – Commencement Orders

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Orders made under section 170(3) include:

See also

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References

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  1. ^ The citation of this Act by this short title is authorised by section 173 of this Act.
  2. ^ "Health and Social Care Act 2008 - Section 129".
  3. ^ "Health and Social Care Act 2008 - SCHEDULE 11".
  4. ^ "Lords summon Minister to address concerns about proposed vaccination of care home staff as a condition of employment". UK Parliament. 12 July 2021.
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