GovWire

These directions revoke the NHS Trusts and Primary Care Trusts (Sexually Transmitted Diseases) Directions 2000, which directed that NHS trusts and primary care trusts take necessary steps to ensure that information which could identify an individual accessing services offering sexually transmitted infections (STIs) diagnosis and care was not disclosed, except for the purpose of treatment and to prevent further transmission of STIs.

The directions were revoked because, since the introduction of the Health and Social Care Act 2012, the NHS Trusts and Primary Care Trusts (Sexually Transmitted Diseases) Directions 2000 only applied to a few remaining NHS hospital trusts and not most NHS organisations that provide STI and HIV services. Further, the directions have been superseded by the Data Protection Act 2018, which along with the UK General Data Protection Regulation provides a comprehensive legal framework for data protection.

As the directions have now been withdrawn, there is no HIV or STI condition-specific legislation governing the information of people accessing these services.

Guidelines from NHS England provide information for patients, health professionals and information governance professionals on how HIV and STI information is kept confidential, used and shared.

These directions came into force on 12 October 2023.