Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what guidance they provide to NHS commissioners on the principles of value-based procurement (VBP); whether such commissioners have to abide by those principles when making decisions on the provision of healthcare products and services to patients; if not, what plans they have to ensure that they do; and when they estimate that NHS Supply Chain will publish the results of its pilot programmes on VBP.

The Public Contract Regulations (PCR) 2015 form part of the procurement landscape alongside the NHS (Procurement, Patient Choice and Competition) (No.2) Regulations 2013 (PPCCR). Made under Section 75 of the Health and Social Care Act 2012, the PPCCR apply to NHS England and NHS Improvement and clinical commissioning groups and are enforced by NHS England and NHS Improvement. Commissioners should ensure that they comply with both regimes when procuring healthcare services.

Regulation 68 of the PCR allows contracting authorities to determine the most economically advantageous tender and the lowest cost by using a life-cycle costing approach which includes all costs over the life cycle of works, supplies or services. Life-cycle costing is the key principle behind value based procurement. NHS Supply Chain has undertaken eight pilot studies with National Health Service trusts to assess how value based procurement can drive sustainable increased savings and improve patient outcomes in the NHS. The findings will be published later in the year and will then then be presented to and discussed with the NHS.