Government and GP representatives have agreed reforms to GP contracts in a move aimed at bringing back the family doctor in a scheme that will involve a funding boost of £889m and moves to end the ‘8am appointment scramble’.
The new deal agreed between the government and British Medical Association will free up doctors from red tape and box-ticking targets to concentrate on treating patients.
The burdensome red tape on GPs will be reduced by scrapping 32 of 76 targets such as reporting on staff wellbeing meetings or explaining how they are reviewing staff access to IT systems.
The new agreed contract will modernise general practice by requiring GP surgeries to allow patients to request appointments online throughout working hours from October, freeing up the phones for those who need them most, and making it easier for practices to triage patients based on medical need. The reforms are part of the government’s Plan for Change to make general practice fit for the future and will support GPs in taking the first steps to end the 8am scramble for appointments, which so many patients currently endure every day – in turn improving access to GPs for everyone.
The deal for family doctors is backed by the biggest funding boost for General Practice in years, reversing the decade-long cuts to general practice funding as a share of the NHS budget.
Health and Social Care Secretary, Wes Streeting, said: “Rebuilding the broken NHS starts with GPs. Patients need to be able to easily book an appointment, in the manner they want, with their regular doctor if they choose.
“Today, we have taken the first step to fixing the front door to the NHS, bringing back the family doctor, and ending the 8am scramble.
“Over the past decade, funding for GPs has been cut relative to the rest of the NHS, while the number of targets for GPs has soared. That’s why patients are struggling to get an appointment.
“This government is cutting the red tape that ties up GPs time and backing them with an extra £889 million next year. In return, more patients will be able to request appointments online and see their regular doctor for each appointment. Through the Prime Minister’s Plan for Change, we will work with GPs to rebuild the NHS and make it fit for the future.”
Dr Amanda Doyle, NHS England national director for primary care and community services, said: “Improving patients’ access to general practice is a huge priority for the NHS and this contract sets out the next steps to put the family doctor at the heart of the shift to a neighbourhood health service.
“This is the first time in four years that the GP contract has been accepted as proposed and I hope it will be seen as positive for practices, GP teams and patients when introduced in April.
“It shows how NHS England and the Department of Health and Social Care have listened and delivered on the priorities that matter most to patients and general practice teams, including a significant increase in funding and extra flexibility in the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme to recruit more staff including GPs.”
