This publication provides statistics on the number of unique NHS numbers with an associated national data opt-out. The national data opt-out was introduced on 25 May 2018. It was introduced following recommendations from the National Data Guardian. It indicates that a patient does not want their confidential patient information to be shared for purposes beyond their individual care across the health and care system in England. The service allows individuals to set a national data opt-out or reverse a previously set opt-out. It replaced the previous type 2 opt-outs which patients registered via their GP Practice.
Previous type 2 opt-outs have been converted to national data opt-outs each month, until November 2018. This is why the monthly increase in opt-outs decreases from December 2018 onward.
This publication includes the number of people who have a national data opt-out, broken down by age, gender and a variety of geographical breakdowns.
From June 2020 the methodology for reporting NDOP changed, representing a break in time series. Therefore, caution should be used when comparing data to publications prior to June 2020. The number of deceased people with an active NDOP has been captured and reported for the first time in June 2020.
Please note that this publication is no longer released monthly. It is released annually or when the national opt-out rate changes by more than 0.1 per cent.
Prior to September 2020 there is a slight inflation of less than 0.05 percent in the number of National Data Opt-outs. This is due to an issue with the data processing, which has been resolved and does not affect data after September 2020. This issue does not disproportionately affect any single breakdown, including geographies. Please take this into consideration when using the data.
As of January 2023, index of multiple deprivation (IMD) data has been added to the publication, allowing the total number of opt-outs to be grouped by IMD decile. This data has been included as a new CSV, and has also been added to a new table in the summary file. IMD measures relative deprivation in small areas in England, with decile 1 representing the most deprived areas, and decile 10 representing least deprived.
Please note that the figures reported in IMD decile tables will not add up to the national totals. This is because the IMD-LSOA mapping reference data was created in 2019, and any geography codes added since then will not be mapped to an IMD decile. For more information about the reference data used, please view this report: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/english-indices-of-deprivation-2019
Management information describes aggregate information collated and used in the normal course of business to inform operational delivery, policy development or the management of organisational performance. It is usually based on administrative data but can also be a product of survey data. We publish these management information to ensure equality of access and provide wider public value.