Elective care covers a broad range of planned, non-emergency services, from diagnostic tests and scans to outpatient appointments, surgery and cancer treatment.

Reforming elective care for patients

Our plan sets out how the NHS will reform elective care services and meet the 18 week referral to treatment standard by March 2029.

Under this plan elective care will be increasingly personalised and digital. We will focus on improving experience and convenience, empowering people with choice and control over when and where they will be treated.

Different models of care will be more widely and consistently adopted. The use of artificial intelligence and other technology to deliver care will be more widespread and will help boost productivity.

We will reform how elective care is overseen and funded. Money will increasingly follow the patient, and incentives will drive improvements in waiting times.

To meet the 18-week standard and reform elective care by March 2029, we are focusing on 4 areas: empowering patients; reforming delivering; delivering care in the right place; and aligning funding, performance oversight and delivery standards. Each area is underpinned by a set of commitments for NHS England, integrated care boards and elective care providers.

You can contact us by emailing england.electiverecoverypmo@nhs.net.

Reforming elective care for patients

Patients’ guide to the elective care reform plan