News  

The Doctors' and Dentists' Review Body (DDRB) will be asked to determine an overall increase in GP funding based on evidence to be submitted by the GPC and NHS Employers.

Any increase will then be split across four elements of GMS contract pay according to a ratio agreed between negotiators.

The increase will be divided into 19 parts, seven of which will be used to top up global sums. Two will go to correction factors, five each to quality framework pay and enhanced services, while locum and seniority payments will be frozen.

In addition, negotiators have revealed that 72 quality framework points will be re-allocated. The points will incentivise prevention of cardiovascular disease in people with high BP, boost advice and choice of contraception, add a new depression indicator, alter CKD, diabetes and lung disease indicators and boost drug treatment for people with heart failure.

The much-criticised prevalence formula that weights quality pay according to rates of disease in each practice is also set to be overhauled, to bring ‘greater funding for practices in areas of high deprivation’.

GPC chairman Dr Laurence Buckman said: ‘We hope this helps develop general practice funding in a way that recognises our most needy patients.  GPs understand that the contract needs to be made more stable and less dependent on corrective mechanisms and I hope that this set of changes will move towards achieving that end.  We have agreed a way to help the DDRB give every GP a resource rise.’

nick.bostock@haymarket.com

• See this week’s GP for analysis about what this means for practices.

Comment below and tell us what you think