The Care Quality Commission has been accused of offering poor value after it raised providers’ fees while slashing the number of inspections it carries out.
The 70% fall in inspections since last year has coincided with the CQC increasing adult care providers’ fees by £6m this year. A National Care Forum survey of its members, all of whom are not-for-profit providers, has identified an average increase in registration fees of 22%.
“At the same time that the number of inspections is going down some care home groups are paying millions; it’s bad value for money,” said Martin Green, chief executive of the English Community Care Association.
But a CQC spokesperson said: “We don’t agree that the number of inspections a service receives can be directly equated to value for money. The CQC is not providing services to the care providers that it regulates – it is ensuring that they comply with the law.”
He added the rise reflected the fact that the government required the CQC to recover more of the costs of regulation from providers.
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