NHS Palantir patient data disclosure was inaccurate, England admits

NHS England has admitted its NHS Palantir patient data disclosure was inaccurate, after a data protection assessment failed to state that Palantir staff could view identifiable patient information inside part of the Federated Data Platform. The correction matters because Palantir holds a £330 million contract to provide the platform, a core NHS data-sharing system intended to help address care backlogs across England.

The inaccurate statement appeared in NHS England’s Data Protection Impact Assessment, or DPIA, for the Federated Data Platform. In May, NHS England confirmed that Palantir staff can access identifiable patient information in the platform’s National Data Integration Tenant. That access was not accurately described in the DPIA.

NHS England acknowledged the problem after the National Data Guardian, an independent statutory office advising England’s health and care system, sought clarification. The disclosure adds to scrutiny of Palantir’s NHS role, which has been politically sensitive since the company received £60 million in COVID-era contracts without competition before winning the larger 2023 platform deal.

Who can access NHS Palantir patient data?

National Data Guardian Nicola Byrne said in an updated report that NHS England had confirmed some external supplier staff supporting the Federated Data Platform can access identifiable patient information for specific technical purposes under NHS England’s direction. NHS England says the access is technically necessary, but Byrne said her office is not involved in operating the platform and cannot independently verify that assessment.

NHS England said in a statement: “We recognize that the DPIA contained an error in how it described supplier access to data so we are correcting that error, and we apologize for any confusion this has caused.” It added that clear information about supplier access is central to the program and said it would continue working with the National Data Guardian, the Information Commissioner’s Office and governance groups.

The Federated Data Platform is designed to improve data sharing across the NHS in England. NHS England has presented it as a way to help reduce the backlog in patient care. The specific issue raised by the National Data Guardian is narrower: whether the public documentation accurately described who could see identifiable patient data, and why.

Byrne said public concern reflects both the importance people place on confidentiality and continuing unease about Palantir’s role in the NHS. She said the topic has been political to some degree, with scrutiny from the public, professionals and media increasing over time. Her report said accuracy and transparency must remain central priorities for the Federated Data Platform program.

The National Data Guardian is custodian of the Caldicott Principles, the NHS confidentiality rules that date back to the 1990s. Byrne said NHS England’s failure to disclose Palantir’s access showed how quickly trust can be damaged if the “no surprises” principle is not upheld on who can access people’s data and for what purpose.

Sam Smith, coordinator of medConfidential, told The Register that NHS England’s explanation did not address the broader management issue. “NHS England claims it was little more than a typo, but this is the result of punishing their expert staff away from speaking truth to leadership,” he said. “It is another example of the culture of fear that NHS England has cultivated around the platform. Palantir is not magic, but it does require competence to lead, manage, and use.”

NHS England said it has strict policies for managing access to patient data and is committed to transparency. It said it has published a detailed response to the National Data Guardian’s concerns and is implementing the recommendations in full.

This story draws on original reporting from The Register.