The Intensive Care Society's Position on the Health Bill

The NHS Modernisation (Health) Bill is one of the most significant reforms to NHS governance in over a decade. The legislation proposes major changes, including the abolition of NHS England, reforms to Integrated Care Boards (ICBs), changes to patient safety arrangements and the introduction of a statutory Single Patient Record.

These reforms will shape how services are planned, how decisions are made and how care is delivered across the NHS. For intensive care professionals, patients and families, the decisions taken now will have implications for years to come.

As the professional home for the UK's multiprofessional intensive care community, the Intensive Care Society has been working to ensure that critical care expertise is reflected in the legislation. Working with Council members, Special Advisers and our Legal and Ethical Group, we developed and submitted evidence to Parliament on behalf of our members and the wider intensive care community.

Our contribution focused on issues that matter to intensive care services: maintaining high clinical standards, ensuring professional expertise informs decision-making, and supporting a healthcare system that continues to prioritise patient safety.

• We have highlighted the importance of strong accountability for nationally recognised standards so that patients can expect high-quality care wherever they are treated.
• We have also advocated for meaningful clinical and professional input into the structures that shape healthcare delivery. Intensive care relies on the expertise of doctors, nurses, pharmacists and allied health professionals working together, and that multiprofessional perspective should be reflected in health policy.

The Society's work on the Health Bill has been carried out alongside Royal Colleges, professional bodies, healthcare charities and patient organisations. Many of the issues raised are shared across the health and care sector, while our contribution has ensured that the voice of intensive care is represented within those wider conversations.

The Society will continue to champion intensive care with and for its members, working with policymakers, NHS leaders and partner organisations to influence policy, improve standards and ensure that the needs of critically ill patients, their families and the professionals who care for them remain at the heart of decision-making

The Society's work on the Health Bill is one example of how we champion intensive care with and for our members. If there is an issue affecting your patients, workforce or service that deserves national attention, contact the Policy team at policy@ics.ac.uk.