Protecting personal health and care data consultation

The Department of Health has launched this consultation, which seeks views on proposals to introduce tighter controls and safeguards on the use of personal health and care data.

People should be confident that their personal data is not open to misuse.

The government proposes allowing a number of local organisations, to create secure safe havens, which will have access under strong controls to information from peoples’ personal care records which could be used to identify an individual. These safe havens will need to be accredited by the Secretary of State for Health.

The Health and Social Care Information Centre continues to be responsible for holding identifiable data at the national level.

This work is separate from but complementary to the work on care.data that NHS England is leading.

For further information, including how to respond to the consultation before the deadline of Friday 8 August, visit www.gov.uk/government/consultations/protecting-personal-health-and-care-data.