By Neil Roberts, 22 January 2014

NHS England officials plan to overhaul funding arrangements for the whole urgent care system, but admitted to fears that councils could misuse health service funding intended to promote integration.

Part of NHS England’s ongoing urgent care review will look at ways to allow integrated funding of urgent care pathways across primary and secondary care, its acute care director Professor Keith Willett told MPs on the House of Commons health select committee.

The current fragmented system of different funding and commissioning systems for general practice, hospitals, ambulances and community care services meant even when the sectors were brought together to commission integrated urgent care pathways caused problems, said Professor Willett.

Professor Willett, who is leading the review of urgent care under NHS England medical director Sir Bruce Keogh, said: ‘When we come to allocate the money, again, we are still stuck with those methods.