Decision

[Withdrawn] Coronavirus (COVID-19): notice under Regulation 3(4) of the Health Service (Control of Patient Information) Regulations 2002

Updated 18 October 2022

This was published under the 2019 to 2022 Johnson Conservative government

This decision was withdrawn on

This notice expired on 31 October 2022. See the current Notice to GPs and NHS England to share information.

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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-notification-to-organisations-to-share-information/coronavirus-covid-19-notice-under-regulation-34-of-the-health-service-control-of-patient-information-regulations-2002

To:

General practices in England whose IT systems are supplied by The Phoenix Partnership (TPP) or Egton Medical Information Systems (EMIS)
NHS England
NHS Digital

29 September 2022

As we move away from the initial response to COVID-19, the health and social care system will need to continue to take action to manage and mitigate the spread and impact of the outbreak.

I am giving notice, under Regulation 3(4) of COPI, to:

  • NHS England
  • GP practices in England, whose IT systems are supplied by The Phoenix Partnership (TPP) or Egton Medical Information Systems (EMIS)

To process data for purposes set out in Regulation 3(1) of COPI.

Requirement to process confidential patient information

I hereby provide recipients with notice under Regulation 3(4) that I require you to process confidential patient information, including disseminating to a person or organisation permitted to process confidential patient information under Regulation 3(3) of COPI for the purposes set out in Regulation 3(1) of COPI to support the Secretary of State’s response to COVID-19 (COVID-19 purpose).

Organisations are only required to process such confidential patient information:

  • where the confidential patient information to be processed is required for a COVID-19 purpose and will be processed solely for that COVID-19 purpose in accordance with Regulation 7 of COPI

  • from the date of this notice until 31 October 2022 (which includes a case where the dissemination of the information in question was authorised by a previous regulation 3(4) notice and began before the date of this notice, but which continues on or after that date)

Compliance with notice

Parties subject to this notice will demonstrate effective compliance by carrying out the required processing using the OpenSAFELY platform.

COVID-19 purpose

A COVID-19 purpose includes but is not limited to the following:

  • understanding COVID-19 and risks to public health, trends in COVID-19 and such risks, and controlling and preventing the spread of COVID-19 and such risks
  • processing to support the NHS Test and Trace programme
  • identifying and understanding information about patients or potential patients with or at risk of COVID-19, information about incidents of patient exposure to COVID-19 and the management of patients with or at risk of COVID-19 including: locating, contacting, screening, flagging and monitoring such patients and collecting information about and providing services in relation to testing, diagnosis, self-isolation, fitness to work, treatment, medical and social interventions and recovery from COVID-19
  • understanding information about patient access to health services and adult social care services and the need for wider care of patients and vulnerable groups as a direct or indirect result of COVID-19 and the availability and capacity of those services or that care
  • monitoring and managing the response to COVID-19 by health and social care bodies and the government including providing information to the public about COVID-19 and its effectiveness and information about capacity, medicines, equipment, supplies, services and the workforce within the health services and adult social care services
  • delivering services to patients, clinicians, the health services and adult social care services workforce and the public about and in connection with COVID-19, including the provision of information, fit notes and the provision of health care and adult social care services
  • research and planning in relation to COVID-19

Recording of processing

A record should be kept of all data processed under this notice.

Expiry of this notice

If no further notice is sent to you by me, this notice will expire on 31 October 2022.

Yours faithfully,

Nicky Brassington, Deputy Director, Data and Analytics

On behalf of the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care

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