Manx Care
9 FOI requests | Full disclosure rate: 2655.6%
The Freedom of Information requests to Manx Care reveal an authority grappling with the dual pressures of pandemic-era scrutiny and systemic data limitations. A dominant theme is the reliance on the 'information not held' exemption, particularly regarding mortality data. In over a dozen cases (e.g., 1812503, 1994741, 2210085), Manx Care consistently refused to provide death statistics or cause-of-death breakdowns, stating they do not hold death certificates and directing requesters to the General Registry. This creates a significant blind spot in public understanding of health outcomes, as the authority holds admission and treatment data but claims no access to the final mortality records. Similarly, requests regarding the scientific specifics of the pandemic response (virus isolation, PCR thresholds) were met with clarifications that Manx Care does not perform these advanced procedures, effectively outsourcing the scientific narrative to UK laboratories while refusing to generate new data on adverse events.
Key Cases
Case 1786213 — Highlights a significant transparency gap where Manx Care refused to provide advertising authorizations, invoices, and payments under a 'practical refusal' exemption, despite disclosing the budget. This suggests potential opacity in how public funds are authorized and spent on marketing.
Case 2175541 — Reveals the massive financial reliance on agency and bank workers, providing a clear picture of the cost of staffing shortages. The inability to differentiate between nurses and HCAs due to shared finance codes also exposes weaknesses in the authority's financial tracking systems.
Case 2371715 — Directly addresses patient safety and accountability by disclosing 'Duty of Candour' incidents. The revelation of 20 incidents, including one escalated to a formal complaint, provides concrete evidence of systemic failures and the authority's response to them.
Case 1873690 — A pivotal case in the pandemic narrative where Manx Care explicitly stated they do not perform virus isolation procedures. This clarifies the scope of their laboratory capabilities and counters claims that they are hiding evidence of virus isolation, while simultaneously admitting they do not hold the data requested by skeptics.
Case 2082778 — Clarifies the financial relationship with the UK government regarding vaccines. By confirming the Isle of Man paid nothing for the vaccines themselves (provided free by the UK), it shifts the focus of public spending inquiries to administration and distribution costs rather than procurement.
Related FOI Stories
The 'Not Held' Defense on Mortality and Death Data — #1812503, #1812501, #1941281, #1988313, #1994741
Virology, PCR Protocols, and Vaccine Skepticism — #1845993, #1861725, #1873689, #1873690, #1880753
Financial Transparency and Spending — #1786213, #1799406, #1820933, #1943113, #2007297
Hospital Performance, Waiting Lists, and Staffing — #1782317, #1821533, #1838029, #1931457, #1940485
Data Compilation and System Limitations — #1786213, #1812503, #1820933, #1915369, #1919333
| Date | Title | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| 2025-10-09 | Subject: Freedom of Information Request - Reimbursement Data | Not required to fulfill request |
| A request was made for 12 months of aggregated community reimbursement data for medicines and medical devices by dispensing contractor. Manx Care refused the request, stating they are not required to create or derive the specific aggregated information from their existing records. | ||
| 2025-02-04 | Breast Cancer Patients | Not required to fulfill request |
| A request was made for the criteria, number of grants, and costs of Independent Funding Requests (IFR) for breast cancer patients over the last five years. Manx Care provided the criteria and grant numbers for the period since its inception in 2021 but refused to disclose the costs citing a practical inability to locate the information. | ||
| 2023-04-11 | misdiagnosed injuries | Not required to fulfill request |
| 2022-05-17 | Tinnitus | Not required to fulfill request |
| The requester asked for monthly tinnitus case statistics for the last five years, but Manx Care was not required to fulfill the request and instead provided a general informational leaflet about tinnitus from the British Tinnitus Association. | ||
| 2021-09-15 | underlying cause of death was Covid-19 | Not required to fulfill request |
| The requester asked Manx Care for statistics on Covid-19 deaths, including underlying causes, pre-existing conditions, and ages of the deceased. Manx Care refused the request, stating they do not hold death certificates and would need to create new information by accessing individual health records. | ||
| 2021-09-10 | Deaths from Covid versus deaths with Covid | Not required to fulfill request |
| A request was made to Manx Care for detailed statistics on Covid-19 deaths, including causes and underlying conditions, but the authority refused to fulfill it because the data would require creation or derivation rather than retrieval of existing records. | ||
| 2021-06-02 | Plastic use in Nobles canteen | Not required to fulfill request |
| The requester asked for a five-year monthly breakdown of plastic cutlery usage and costs at Nobles canteen, but Manx Care refused the request citing the substantial compilation exemption. Instead, the authority disclosed that they have been purchasing wooden or biodegradable 'vegware' cutlery for the last three years to comply with the Single Use Plastics Reduction Plan. | ||
| 2021-05-27 | hospital admissions due to COVID-19 (SARS-COV-2) vaccination | Not required to fulfill request |
| The requester asked for the number of hospital admissions attributed to adverse effects of COVID-19 vaccination in 2020 and 2021. Manx Care stated they were not required to compile data for the full period but disclosed that 4 admissions were coded as such from April 1, 2021, onwards. | ||
| 2021-05-27 | deaths secondary to vaccination for COVID-19 (SARS-COV-2) | Not required to fulfill request |
| A request was made to Manx Care for statistics on deaths secondary to COVID-19 vaccination in 2020 and 2021. The authority refused to fulfill the request, citing that the information did not exist in a pre-existing format and would require creation. | ||