Health Minister John Hutton today announced an extra £28m to help local areas develop high quality Out of Hours (OOH) health services.
The new money is being made available over the next two years to help local areas deliver services from December 2004 when GPs are being given the choice to opt out of providing OOH services.
Mr Hutton also released details of how much each Primary Care Trust (PCT) will receive from £110m announced earlier this year for supporting the development of OOHs care in the new GP contract. This money is being used to double the existing OOH fund, from £46m to £92m annually, and to pay for the technical infrastructure that will connect all OOH health providers to NHS Direct.
The extra £28m announced today is intended to help those PCTs facing the biggest challenge in developing their OOH services. The Department of Health will be working with Strategic Health Authorities (SHAs) on how best to distribute these resources.
John Hutton said:
"All of us want to know that if our child or parent is ill during the night there will be a health professional immediately available to provide the care they need. The challenge of providing Out of Hours care is therefore one that affects all of us.
"The Department of Health is determined to support local health providers in meeting this challenge. The resources are there, the expertise is there, and a lot of good work is already underway.
"We are fully committed to delivering the new GP contract on time so that all GPs, who wish to, can opt out of their out-of-hours responsibility from December 2004. This is an opportunity for PCTs to rethink the provision of Out of Hours services across their area and to co-ordinate this with other services including A&E, social care and NHS Walk-in Centres."
Mr Hutton confirmed that the intention was to give all OOH funding to PCTs on the basis of population need rather than by number of GPs as was previously the case.
He said:
"We want to move to a position where all PCTs will get a fair share of the OOH fund. However, some, perhaps in rural and remote or deprived inner city areas, may need more help than others to deliver OOH care by next December. The £28m will be used to support such areas. We also intend to continue 'ring-fencing' the money from the OOH fund to make sure patients get the maximum benefits from these resources."
Dr Mark Reynolds MBE, chairman of the National Association of GP Co-operatives, said:
"We are already working hard to prepare for next year and this extra money is a welcome addition to the resources already available to local areas. It is also greatly encouraging that these resources are assisting the complex process of building the technical infrastructure that will support Out of Hours services. Today's announcement illustrates how important it is for all local health providers to focus on the challenge of developing Out of Hours care and work together to meet next year's deadline."
The Department of Health is already working with PCTs and other OOH healthcare providers to meet next year’s deadline. New DOH guidance was recently issued to PCTs outlining the issues they and other providers of local services need to consider when providing high quality OOH care and what staff structures need to be in place. This guidance is the first of a series that will be issued to offer help on key OOH issues such as provider development, funding and performance management.
Notes to editors:
1. A PCT break down of the 2004/5 allocations from the £110m mentioned in the press notice is available from the DOH media centre.
2. All of the OOH funding mentioned in this press notice is being allocated over 2004/5 and 2005/6.
3. The new GMS contract is to be implemented from 1 April 2004. PCTs can begin implementing alternative arrangements for the patients of opted-out practices from that date. GPs will be able to opt-out of their existing out-of-hours responsibilities at their own discretion after December 2004. PCTs will therefore need to have alternative OOH arrangements for all affected patients by the end of December 2004.
4. Under the new General and Personal Medical Services contracts PCTs will also receive an average of £6000 per GP who opts out towards the costs of OOH care. The current restrictions on the OOH fund will be removed so that PCTs can target these funds at a wider range of OOH health providers rather than just GPs.
5. For media enquiries only please contact Brad Smythe on 0207 210 5301 or Lisa Ward on 020 7210 5896.
