Personal Health Budgets

Personal Health Budgets What is a personal health budget? It’s an amount of money to support the patients identified healthcare and wellbeing needs, planned and agreed between the individual, their representative (if they have one) and the local NHS team. At the centre of the personal health budget is the patients care plan. This plan helps to decide their health and wellbeing goals, together with the local NHS team who support them, and set out how the budget will be spent to enable them to keep healthy and safe.

Personal Health Budgets The aim of a personal health budgets: The aim of a personal health budget is to give the patient more choice and control over the money spent on meeting their health care and wellbeing needs. This means that they select services that meet their needs and are right for them. The vision for personal health budgets is to enable people with long term conditions and disabilities to have greater choice, flexibility and control over the health care and support they receive. Personal health budgets are one way of helping individuals to be more involved in discussions and decisions about their care.

Personal Health Budgets Key points: The patient should have more flexibility, choice and control over the healthcare and support they receive through the NHS. Nobody will have to get healthcare in this way if they don’t want to. NHS and care providers should work together in partnership with the patient to meet their needs. If an individual isn’t able to have a personal health budget, they can still speak to the local NHS team about how their needs can be met in another way.

Personal Health Budgets How is a personal health budget managed? Once a care plan has been agreed between the patient and the NHS, the money in a personal health budget can be managed in three different ways: A notional budget: The NHS holds the money, and buys or provides the support and services patients’ have chosen. A third-party arrangement: An organisation independent of the patient and the NHS holds the money on their behalf, and buys or provides the support they have chosen. A direct payment for health care: The money is transferred directly to the individual or their representative, and buys services directly as agreed in the care plan.

Personal Health Budgets Who is eligible? Initially those who currently have continuing healthcare needs, and who are eligible for NHS Continuing Healthcare*, are eligible for a personal health budget. Eligibility is expected to be extended to other categories of care in the future. From April 2014, people eligible for NHS continuing healthcare will have the right to ask for a personal health budget, including a direct payment for healthcare. Then from October 2014, people eligible will have the right to have a personal health budget. *More information about who is eligible for NHS Continuing Healthcare can be found on NHS Choices.NHS Choices

Personal Health Budgets Benefits to patients (summary): More flexible approach so that an individual care plan can be designed by the patient, to best suit their needs. More choice to agree the health and wellbeing outcomes that a patient wants to achieve in partnership with healthcare professionals. More involvement for patients’ in choosing suitable services for them and to spend money in ways and at times that makes sense to them.

Personal Health Budgets Who to talk to about getting a personal health budget: Patients’ should talk to their local NHS team who help them most often with their care - this might be a care manager, or a GP - and they will discuss personal health budgets with them. Even if a personal health budget is not right for the patient, they can talk to them about other ways to make sure that they get the healthcare and support that works best for them.

Personal Health Budgets Further information: More information can be found on any of the three Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) websites: NHS England - Peoplehub -