Systems must fully fund virtual wards from 2024/25

Integrated care systems (ICSs) were asked to develop and expand virtual wards as part of the 2022/23 operational planning guidance. It said there should be 40 to 50 virtual wards per 100,000 population by December 2023. Patients in virtual wards are monitored remotely, using equipment such as pulse oximeters (pictured), allowing them to stay in their own homes.

Supporting information on virtual wards for ICS leaders said the national bodies will provide £200m from the service development fund in 2022/23. NHS England and NHS Improvement said this is ‘a major contribution to the set up and development of virtual wards’.

A further £250m, on a match-funded basis, will be available in 2023/24. However, it added that it is not intended for the funding to cover the ongoing costs of the service, and no ring-fenced funds will be offered from 2024/25.

‘Systems will therefore need to ensure virtual wards are built into long-term strategies and expenditure plans,’ said Matthew Winn, NHS England and NHS Improvement director of community health, in a letter to ICS and clinical commissioning group finance leads and chief executives.

Systems will be able to determine how the allocation is spent, provided it relates directly to virtual ward development, he added. However, it is expected that most of the funding will be spent on workforce pay, with some expenditure on enabling technology, licensing software and platforms, and the technology required.

An indicative breakdown of costs sees pay account for 82% of the £200m in 2022/23, overheads (8%), licensing (7%), interoperability costs (2%), and consumables (1%).

A further £6.3m is available via the NHSX regional scale programme, designated for ICS technology implementation support, including, but not exclusive to, the technology enablement of virtual wards.

The guidance adds that ICSs will be expected to develop two-year rollout and delivery plans (2022 to 2024). These should include detailed financial plans with projected workforce levels and expenditure. A template will be available on Future NHS, together with a tool to show systems' understanding of the expected 'bed' capacity benefits of the programme.

Systems will be expected to provide quarterly financial updates on the programme from the second half of 2022/23. The ICS rate of allocation will be monitored via the integrated single financial environment (ISFE).