Regulation of Health and Social Care — A New Berlin Wall?

The Government has published proposals to set up two new structures ‐ one for the regulation of social services and one for independently provided health care. This article argues that a single regulator for all categories of health care, including that provided in social care settings, would be more cost‐effective. It proposes the creation of functionally ring‐fenced divisions of health care regulation, structured within and answerable to the proposed commissions for care standards.