Royal Mail, NHS England, NHS Providers, Healthwatch England, National Voices, and the Patients Association have written an open letter to Ofcom highlighting the introduction of new protections to ensure reliable and efficient postal service for NHS patients.  

The postal regulator has today closed its public consultation to reform the universal postal delivery service, with changes to be announced this summer.  

Since the beginning of the consultation, NHS and patient organisations have worked with Royal Mail to ensure that proposed changes improve timely delivery of NHS letters.

The improvements include: 

• A new Royal Mail NHS-specific barcode to support mail delivery teams ensures that NHS letters are delivered on time, including during service disruptions.
• A new briefing for NHS organisations to increase awareness and uptake of the variety of Royal Mail services for the timely delivery of NHS letters.