The NHS Long Term Plan, prepared by the NHS and published in 2019, builds on previous commitments made by the Government to personalise care through informed conversations between healthcare professionals and dying people. Part of this is a commitment to help people to live independently for longer, as well as a promise to give more people more say about the care they receive and where they receive it, particularly towards the end of their lives. I believe empowering people with terminal conditions in this way will better enable them to access palliative care when and where they most need it.
The creation of the Personalised Care Institute has made training available to help staff identify and support patients and to introduce personalised care planning for everyone identified as being in their last year of life. Importantly, this enables meaningful conversations to take place and allows staff to help patients and families, address their concerns and to explain the breadth of services available in the local area.
On the funding of hospices, NHS England and NHS Improvement have recently provided funding to support seven strategic clinical networks to deliver palliative and end of life care. The Health and Care Act requires Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) to commission palliative care and end of life services.
Furthermore, NHS England has actively increased its support to local commissioners to improve the accessibility, quality and sustainability of palliative and end of life care for all. This has included the publication of statutory guidance and service specifications, with further resources available on the FutureNHS Collaboration Platform.
In addition, NHS England has funded the establishment of a Palliative and End of Life Care Strategic Clinical Network in every NHS England region, which works closely with local commissioners regarding the development of accessible, high quality and sustainable services.
Marie Cure Campaign on Cost of Living -
I note the concerns raised by Marie Curie about the cost-of-living challenges facing those with terminal illnesses. The Government wants to do all it can to alleviate the pressures on those nearing the end of their lives, and on their families. The main way that the Government does this is through special benefit rules, sometimes referred to as “the Special Rules”. These enable people who are nearing the end of their lives to get faster, easier access to certain benefits, without needing to attend a medical assessment, serve waiting periods and in most cases, receive the highest rate of benefit.
Furthermore, the Government has supported households throughout a difficult period with support such as the Energy Bill Support Scheme and Energy Price Guarantee. This brought total government support for energy bills to £1,500 for the typical household since October 2022 and means that the Government subsidised around half of household energy bills.
Finally, at the Autumn Statement 2022, the Government announced a substantial support package for the most vulnerable for 2023/24, including £300 Cost-of-Living Payments for pensioners, £150 for people on disability benefits, and £900 for people on means-tested benefits. The Government is also providing £1 billion of extra funding by extending the Household Support Fund to March 2024, bringing the total of the Fund to £2.5 billion. That said, I would be happy to write to the Department for Health and Social Care to highlight the concerns raised by Marie Curie.