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GP leaders have warned that an NHS England policy which opens up practice contracts to competition with commercial providers could irrevocably damage continuity of care and see 'swathes' of general practice handed to private companies.
The GPC accused NHS England of failing to follow government regulations, after the body vowed to use only controversial, short-term APMS deals for all new practice procurements.
This contract type allows non-NHS and private providers to bid to run practices. NHS England said APMS deals must be used in all new procurements to avoid discriminating against certain types of provider and breaching competition regulations.
Senior GPC figures said the policy represented poor value for money and warned it could ‘destroy the entire ethos of long-term holistic care that general practice is based on’.
GPC chairman Dr Chaand Nagpaul has pledged to write to NHS England to contest the policy, following advice from BMA lawyers.
NHS England said that while the law does not require a full procurement process to be operated in all circumstances, where it is undertaken, APMS deals must be used.
http://www.gponline.com/gp-anger-destructive-apms-policy-nhs-england/article/1309957
(free registration)
The GPC accused NHS England of failing to follow government regulations, after the body vowed to use only controversial, short-term APMS deals for all new practice procurements.
This contract type allows non-NHS and private providers to bid to run practices. NHS England said APMS deals must be used in all new procurements to avoid discriminating against certain types of provider and breaching competition regulations.
Senior GPC figures said the policy represented poor value for money and warned it could ‘destroy the entire ethos of long-term holistic care that general practice is based on’.
GPC chairman Dr Chaand Nagpaul has pledged to write to NHS England to contest the policy, following advice from BMA lawyers.
NHS England said that while the law does not require a full procurement process to be operated in all circumstances, where it is undertaken, APMS deals must be used.
http://www.gponline.com/gp-anger-destructive-apms-policy-nhs-england/article/1309957
(free registration)