Not all ICSs are created equal (HSJ, 22 June 2022)

Summary

Integrated care systems (ICSs) face a difficult task. The health of the population and the scope of some of the major concerns vary considerably across ICSs. As a result, authorities need to examine all aspects to ensure that ICSs run effectively, writes Phoebe Dunn in this HSJ article.

Content

A decade after Andrew Lansley’s deeply controversial reforms, the Health and Care Act 2022 passed in April without much fanfare. At the heart of the Act is the idea that collaboration between health and care agencies is the best way to improve services and population health. The centrepiece of the changes is 42 ICSs – area-based agencies covering populations of around 500,000 to 3 million, designed to fill the vacuum in the local leadership of the NHS left by previous reforms.

The presence of an intermediate tier in the NHS is nothing new, and ICSs have existed in some form since 2016. But they have lacked any formal powers – until now.

ICSs will assume their new role in the health system at a precarious moment: the NHS faces a growing backlog of unmet need, staffing gaps of more than 100,000, and declining public and political satisfaction. An added challenge is that money is in short supply, with rising inflation eating up a share of planned budgets and no new funding on the horizon.