In our January
bulletin, we updated you on how we will assess the financial viability of
providers applying for registration. This text did not make it clear that this
is at the point of registration and only applies to some providers. To clarify,
we have today published the full guidance and the key points to note are:
This
is new registration guidance; the assessment of the applicants’
financial viability (under Regulation 13 of the CQC (Registration) Regulations
2009) takes place at the point of registration application. We have introduced
this new streamlined method of assessing compliance with Regulation 13 because
providers applying for registration told us that they were not always clear
about what they need to provide to demonstrate their compliance with Regulation
13, and that this had led to delays in registration applications.
The new
approach will apply to new providers submitting a new registration application.
It may also apply to some existing providers seeking to make changes to their
registration (for instance for increases in scale or when we have intelligence
that suggests a provider does not have the financial standing to provide the
services set out in their Statement of Purpose). Registered providers in CQC’s
Market Oversight Scheme are not required to submit a statement of viability as
their financial sustainability is subject to monitoring by our Market Oversight team.
Regulation 13
of the CQC (Registration) Regulations 2009 requires that the provider must take
all reasonable steps to meet the financial demands of providing safe and
appropriate services and have the financial resources needed to provide and
continue to provide the services described in the statement of purpose to the
required standards.
NHS Trusts
and English local authorities are exempt from the requirement (as set out in
Regulation 13 of CQC Registration Regulations 2009). Adult social care providers
currently in the Market Oversight Scheme will not be required to provide a
letter as our Market Oversight colleagues monitor the financial sustainability of these
providers. Evidence of an NHS contract provides sufficient assurance and we
will not require the following providers to submit a statement letter:
- NHS GP practices
- NHS dentists
- NHS 111, out of hours and urgent care services
- Non NHS organisations with NHS contracts
Existing
providers applying to remove or vary a condition, add a location or add a
regulated activity are not generally required to submit a statement.
For all other
provider applications, we've produced a template of the statement letter which
will be available on the CQC website. We recommend that applicants use this
template as it clearly explains to the financial specialist what is being
requested and why, under the regulations. We recommend applicants allow plenty
of time to get their statement completed and returned so it does not delay the
application. Applicants don’t have to use our template, but it will help make
sure the information required is included. In exceptional cases we will
consider other third party evidence such as a guarantee from an investor or
shareholder. The application cannot be approved until assurance has been
received.
Assessing the
financial viability of a provider is an important part of our registration
assessment. We believe this new approach is more consistent and proportionate.
If we have any particular concerns about financial viability we may ask for
further evidence during our assessment.
Guidance for
providers is available on the registration application pages of the website.
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