Department of Health and Social Care written question – answered at on 27 August 2021.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what representations he has received from General Practitioners on their assessment of additional financial assistance required by GPs to meet patient demand for face-to-face GP appointments.
Departmental ministers have met regularly with general practitioner (GP) stakeholders, including the Royal College of General Practitioners and the British Medical Association, throughout the pandemic to discuss the pressures on general practice and any additional support, including financial support, that general practice may require from the Government and NHS England and NHS Improvement to ensure patients have timely and clinically appropriate access to GP services, whether face to face or remotely.
To ensure general practice can continue to provide the necessary care for all patients during this busy time, we have made available an additional £270 million from November 2020 until September 2021. The fund is ringfenced exclusively for use in general practice, to support priorities including increasing GP numbers and capacity, and continuing to make inroads into any backlog of appointments including for chronic disease management and routine vaccinations and immunisations. GPs in England are eligible to use the PPE Portal to order COVID-19 PPE, free of charge, to meet the increased need arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.
NHS England and NHS Improvement have provided guidance to general practice throughout the pandemic. On 19 July, it wrote to general practices, reiterating that GP contractors should continue to offer a blended approach of face-to-face and remote appointments, with digital assessment of patient care needs where possible.
In June 2021, over half of all appointments (excluding vaccination appointments) were face to face (56.3%).
Yes1 person thinks so
No0 people think not
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