Provision of Social Care Services: financial assistance
The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the 2008 Act) allows the Secretary of State to provide financial assistance to "qualifying bodies" who are providing health and social care services, or to those providing related services to providers of health and social care services.
	Section 150 of the 2008 Act and the Health and Social Care (Financial Assistance) Regulations 2009 (S.I. 2009/649) prescribe conditions for a "qualifying body", and this excludes providers who operate for profit. Social care in England is largely delivered by private providers operating on a profit-making basis as an ordinary business. As such, the Secretary of State is unable to make direct payments under this existing statutory power to much of the social care provider sector. Regular funding for social care is funded via integrated care boards or local authorities.
	Section 67167 seeks to address this by making changes to sections 149-156 of the 2008 Act, expanding existing powers so that payments can be made to providers delivering social care services or delivering services relating to that provision of social care.
	These provisions do not amend the powers in these sections of the 2008 Act regarding the ability of the Secretary of State to make payments to health service providers. The type of payment that can be made, and any terms on which a payment is made, to health service providers is also not changed.