Any Qualified Provider

Any Qualified Provider (AQP) is a contractual system within the NHS internal market of the English National Health Service.

It did not require any statutory instrument to achieve its aims and was often incorrectly considered to be part of the reforms associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2012.

[1] In September 2012, 39 services were specified as suitable for the AQP regime:[2] Originally each primary care trust (PCT) was required to introduce at least three AQP services, but by April 2013 the grip of the programme loosened with reduction in central oversight, and the regime become more permissive.

[3] A survey by the Health Service Journal in August 2014 found that clinical commissioning groups enthusiasm for using 'any qualified provider' to increase competition and extend patient choice had declined.

[5] This regime is somewhat similar to that which has prevailed in NHS dentistry, pharmacy and optometry since 1948: patients can use any provider they wish.