2020 No. 1415

National Health Service, England

The National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts and Personal Medical Services Agreements) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations 2020

Made

Laid before Parliament

Coming into force

The Secretary of State makes the following Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 89(1), 94(1), and 272(7) and (8) of the National Health Service Act 20061.

Citation and commencement1

1

These Regulations may be cited as the National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts and Personal Medical Services Agreements) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations 2020.

2

These Regulations come into force on 1st January 2021.

Amendment of the National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 20152

1

The National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 20152 are amended as follows.

2

After regulation 67 insert—

Record of ethnicity information67A

1

This regulation applies if a contractor, or a person acting on behalf of a contractor, makes a request to a patient (“P”) for P to disclose their ethnicity to the contractor so that information can be recorded in P’s medical record (a “relevant request”).

2

If P, or where P is a person to whom paragraph (4) applies, an appropriate person, discloses P’s ethnicity in response to the relevant request, the contractor must record P’s ethnicity in P’s medical record.

3

If P, or where P is a person to whom paragraph (4) applies, an appropriate person, indicates that they would prefer not to disclose P’s ethnicity in response to the relevant request, the contractor must record that response in P’s medical record.

4

This paragraph applies to a person if they—

a

are a child, or

b

lack the capacity to respond to the relevant request.

5

Any information recorded in accordance with this regulation may only be processed if the processing is necessary for medical purposes.

6

Nothing in this regulation authorises the processing of personal data in a manner inconsistent with any provision of the data protection legislation.

7

In this regulation—

  • “appropriate person” means a person who is acting on behalf of P and is—

    1. a

      where P is a child—

      1. i

        a parent of P, or in the absence of both of P’s parents, the guardian or other adult who has the care of P,

      2. ii

        a person duly authorised by a local authority to whose care P has been committed under the Children Act 19893, or

      3. iii

        a person duly authorised by a voluntary organisation by which P is being accommodated under the provisions of that Act;

    2. b

      otherwise—

      1. i

        a relative of P,

      2. ii

        the primary carer of P,

      3. iii

        a donee of a lasting power of attorney granted by P, or

      4. iv

        a deputy appointed for P by the court under the provisions of the Mental Capacity Act 20054;

  • “data protection legislation”, “personal data” and “processing” have the same meanings as in the Data Protection Act 2018 (see section 3 of that Act)5;

  • “medical purposes” has the meaning given for the purposes of section 251 of the Act.

3

In regulation 68(2), in the definition of “Summary Care Record”, after “any other data” insert “(other than any information recorded in accordance with regulation 67A)”.

Amendment of the National Health Service (Personal Medical Services Agreements) Regulations 20153

1

The National Health Service (Personal Medical Services Agreements) Regulations 20156 are amended as follows.

2

After regulation 60 insert—

Record of ethnicity information60A

1

This regulation applies if a contractor, or a person acting on behalf of a contractor, makes a request to a patient (“P”) for P to disclose their ethnicity to the contractor so that information can be recorded in P’s medical record (a “relevant request”).

2

If P, or where P is a person to whom paragraph (4) applies, an appropriate person, discloses P’s ethnicity in response to the relevant request, the contractor must record P’s ethnicity in P’s medical record.

3

If P, or where P is a person to whom paragraph (4) applies, an appropriate person, indicates that they would prefer not to disclose P’s ethnicity in response to the relevant request, the contractor must record that response in P’s medical record.

4

This paragraph applies to a person if they—

a

are a child, or

b

lack the capacity to respond to the relevant request.

5

Any information recorded in accordance with this regulation may only be processed if the processing is necessary for medical purposes.

6

Nothing in this regulation authorises the processing of personal data in a manner inconsistent with any provision of the data protection legislation.

7

In this regulation—

  • “appropriate person” means a person who is acting on behalf of P and is—

    1. a

      where P is a child—

      1. i

        a parent of P, or in the absence of both of P’s parents, the guardian or other adult who has the care of P,

      2. ii

        a person duly authorised by a local authority to whose care P has been committed under the Children Act 1989, or

      3. iii

        a person duly authorised by a voluntary organisation by which P is being accommodated under the provisions of that Act;

    2. b

      otherwise—

      1. i

        a relative of P,

      2. ii

        the primary carer of P,

      3. iii

        a donee of a lasting power of attorney granted by P, or

      4. iv

        a deputy appointed for P by the court under the provisions of the Mental Capacity Act 2005;

  • “data protection legislation”, “personal data” and “processing” have the same meanings as in the Data Protection Act 2018 (see section 3 of that Act);

  • “medical purposes” has the meaning given for the purposes of section 251 of the Act.

3

In regulation 61(2), in the definition of “Summary Care Record”, after “any other data” insert “(other than any information recorded in accordance with regulation 60A)”.

Signed by authority of the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care

Jo ChurchillParliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Prevention,Public Health and Primary Care
EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend the National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 2015 and the National Health Service (Personal Medical Services Agreements) Regulations 2015.

The purpose of these amendments is to ensure where, in response to a specific request made by their GP, patients provide information about their ethnicity, that information is recorded in their medical records. It also sets out the purposes for which that information may be processed.

A full impact assessment has not been prepared for this instrument as no, or no significant, impact on the private, voluntary or public sector is foreseen.