3 Ways to manage a Personal Health Budget:
A Personal Health Budget is a method of payment and management to give people more of a choice and control over the type of person-centred care they have and how its arranged. A Personal Health Budget is an amount of money to provide support to a personal identified care and wellbeing needs, which is set up and planned between the person, or the individual’s representative and the CCG (Clinical Commissioning Group).
Notional Budget. No Money changes hands
The personal Health Budget holder will know how much money is available to the service user, whether it is for themselves or the individual they are representing. They will know how much money is there for their assessed needs and decides together with the NHS team how to spend the money. The NHS team is then accountable and responsible for holding the money and arranging the agreed care and support.
Third-Party Budget
A third-party budget provides an alternative in cases where a person or their family don’t want a direct payment for health care or a notional budget. An organisation independent of the person, the local authority and NHS commissioner will sort and manage the budget and will be responsible for ensuring the right care is put in place, working alongside in partnership with the person and their family to ensure that all outcomes agreed can be achieved.
The Personal Health Budget holder or their representative has the money in a separate bank account solely used for the Personal Health Budget. They will hold responsibility for purchasing the agreed care and support. The Personal Budget Holder must show evidence on what the money has been spent on.
A Personal Health Budget can be spent on a wider range of care and support needed that would be normally routinely done by the commissioned NHS.
Is a Personal Health Budgets one way to privatise NHS?
Personal Health Budgets are about the people getting care that’s specific and right for them, this is funded by the NHS and provided free at the point of contact. At the moment the care commissioner group (CCG) commission a wide range of services from both the NHS, the voluntary and community sector and private providers, based on the needs of the people in their area. The use of personal health budgets does not change this practice of choosing the right provider for the need identified.
Can people add more money into a Personal Health Budgets?
In most of the cases an individual cant top up their personal health budget with their own money, the budget should meet all the identified health and wellbeing needs of the person who this Personal Health Budget is dedicated to. There can some exceptions that can happen, for example service users including people accessing wheelchairs also some dental and ophthalmic services there where undergoing existing legislation people can add their own money to NHS funds in order to purchase.
Secure Personal Assistants are here to help support Personal Health Budgets providing you with the right support and services to help you manage your Personal Health Budgets.
For more information on Secure Personal Assistants and the services, we offer visit our website