My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Ivan Lewis) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.

I am today publishing A National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare and NHS Funded Nursing Care in England, which will come into effect on 1 October 2007.

The framework sets out the principles and process for NHS continuing healthcare and NHS-funded nursing care. By introducing national criteria the framework aims to promote consistency and transparency in decision-making and provide clarity for both patients and professionals about what the NHS will provide for those with the most complex long-term care needs.

It will address the problems surrounding the lack of consistency across the country in the application of the criteria for NHS continuing healthcare and respond to calls by the health ombudsman and the Health Select Committee to bring the locally set criteria and variable decision making into one national system.

The framework will also simplify the interaction between NHS continuing healthcare and NHS funded nursing care.

The final framework was developed following a public consultation undertaken by the department in 2006 that attracted responses from the health and social care sectors, voluntary organisations and users and carers. I am also publishing today a summary of the responses to this consultation.

The framework and the response to the consultation have been placed in the Library and copies are available to honourable Members from the Vote Office.