Commentary on Sections Part 9 – Health and adult social care services: information Functions: information systems Section 256 – Requests for collection under section 255: confidential information
1425.This section restricts the circumstances where a person may make a confidential collection request to the Information Centre. The section defines a confidential collection request as a request relating to information which identifies an individual or from which the identity of a person could be discovered (other than an individual who provides health care or adult social care). Such a request can only be made where the requestor is a principal body able to make a mandatory request (such as Monitor, CQC or NICE) or in the other circumstances set out in the section, for example, where the information may be lawfully disclosed to the requestor.