Warning, Scam Alert
We enjoyed 6 months peace but the old scam appears to have returned under it’s original name ‘European Medical Directory’. You will know this scam as European Medical Directory, Med1web, TEDMI.com or Novachannel but the message is always the same – DO NOT SIGN AND/OR RETURN ANYTHING!

GPC Election Results
As you will be aware, Laurence Buckman reached the end of his tenure and stepped down as GPC Chairman last week. Elections were held and your new GPC Chairman is Chaand Nagpaul. We wish him and his negotiating team for 2013-2014 every success. The new team are:
Chaand Nagpaul (Chairman)
Peter Holden
Dean Marshall
Beth McCarron-Nash
Richard Vautrey
Charlotte Jones (GPC Wales)
Tom Black (GPC Northern Ireland)
Alan McDevitt (GPC Scotland)

Migrant Access to Healthcare, Consultation
Parallel consultations on migrant access to health services in the UK have been published by Department of Health and Home Office. The consultations essentially split patients into four categories:

• Permanent residents, who have a right to free NHS care. The consultations propose that the definition of ordinary residence, which entitles patients to free NHS care, should be changed so that non-European Economic Area migrants must have indefinite leave to remain (ILR) in the UK before they can attain this status.

• Temporary migrants – non-EEA migrants who are subject to immigration control and do not have ILR. It is proposed that this group will in future have to contribute separately to their healthcare costs through a new levy on their visa of at least £200 per year. There would be an initial NHS registration process which would assess the need to pay this levy, be run externally to GP practices and be separate to practice registration.

• Short term visitors from outside the EEA and illegal migrants, who would be charged directly at the point of use for treatment, both by hospitals and by GP practices.

• Expatriates and former legal residents of the UK not subject to immigration control. It is proposed that this group would have a right to free NHS care if they have paid National Insurance contributions for a significant period.

Other issues considered in the consultations are:

• Whether non-EEA visitors and other chargeable migrants should be charged for access to emergency treatment in A&E or emergency GP settings.

• Whether the levy for temporary migrants should be at a fixed level or vary, for example, according to the age of the applicant.

• How to improve current hospital processes for collecting income from chargeable patients.

• How to improve the effectiveness of cost recovery from other member states for EEA citizens who receive NHS treatment.

The GPC has a number of concerns, including that the NHS access status of all patients would need to be checked by GP practices on registration, placing a further administrative burden on practices and risking damage to the doctor-patient relationship. The GPC believes there is currently no regulatory basis for NHS England Area Teams not to accept the registration of patients whose immigration status has not been checked. If you respond to the consultation please make the LMC office aware of your response. 

Monitor Call for Evidence on General Practice, Consultation
Monitor has launched a call for evidence on general practice in England, following a recommendation to that effect from its Fair Playing Field Review. Monitor has given two main reasons for the need for a more detailed look at general practice:

• To determine the extent to which commissioning and provision of general practice services is operating in the best interests of patients.

• To gain a better understanding the challenges faced by an important part of the health sector at a time when it is operating under increased pressure.

The BMA will be responding with the following points, amongst others: the high levels of patient satisfaction with current GP services, the fact that patients rarely encounter issues with changing their GP practice, that greater investment in funding for current practices is required in order to allow expansion of services and that Monitor should be encouraging integration of services rather than further competition. Once again, if you respond to the consultation please make the LMC office aware of your response.

Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority
The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) is a government body which provides compensation to blameless victims of violent crime and relies on evidence from the medical authorities to help its work. As a result of the Government consultation “Getting it right for Victims and Witness”, the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme was revised on 27 November 2012.

Under the new provisions of the 2012 Scheme the applicant must now obtain and pay for the initial medical evidence to up to a maximum value of £50.

To ensure suitable information is requested, the CICA will send the applicant a blank medical report to take to their GP to complete (TCX1). The applicant is expected to pay the GP/Practice for the completion of the report up to a maximum value of £50. The completed report should be returned direct from the GP to the CICA. Where an applicant cannot afford to meet the cost of the initial medical report, the CICA will send the applicant a blank medical report to take to their GP to complete (TCX2) or where an applicant cannot obtain the report due to a medical condition which prohibits them from attending their GP, the CICA will issue the TCX2 direct to the GP. The completed report including the payment voucher should be returned direct from the GP to CICA. On receipt the CICA will ensure payment is made for the report. Where the CICA is required to pay for the initial medical evidence, the value of the initial report will be deducted from any award of compensation given. Any follow up reports requested will be done so direct by the CICA and will continue to be processed in the normal manner. If you have any questions about the new provision, please contact the CICA on 0141 331 5495 or alternatively email their relationship managers; relationship.managers@cica.gsi.gov.uk.

OOH Care, GPC Position Paper
Following input and comments from members and stakeholders, the GPC has now published this position paper with regard to OOH Care.

Community Pharmacy, a Guide for GPs and Practice Staff
An updated version of the community pharmacy – a guide for GPs and practice staff has been published jointly by the BMA, PSNC (Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee) and NHS Employers. It provides support for GPs and community pharmacists in developing more effective working relationships as well as providing an insight for NHS commissioners, for improved working in primary care. 

GP Trainees Subcommittee Newsletter
Please widely circulate this latest GP trainees subcommittee newsletter to any GP trainees who may be interested.