The General Medical Services Transitional and Consequential Provisions Order 2004

Services to patients not registered with the contractor in default contracts and general medical services contracts entered into on or before 31st March 2004

24.—(1) Where a medical practitioner who meets the requirements in paragraph (2)—

(a) on or before 31st March 2004, enters into—

(i) a default contract, or

(ii) a general medical services contract,

whether as an individual medical practitioner or as one of two or more individuals practising in partnership; or

(b) is a legal and beneficial shareholder in a company which enters into a general medical services contract on or before 31st March 2004,

that contract must require the contractor to provide such of the additional services as are equivalent to those of the services listed in paragraph (2)(a) to (c), to the patients to whom the medical practitioner was providing those services on the date on which the contract was signed, except, in the case of a general medical services contract, to the extent that the contractor is not required to provide the additional service concerned to its registered patients under regulation 29 of the 2004 Regulations.

(2) The requirements referred to in paragraph (1) are that, on 31st March 2004 (or on the date on which the contract is signed, if earlier) the medical practitioner is providing, as part of general medical services under section 29 of the 1977 Act(1), to a patient who is not recorded as being on his list of patients—

(a) child health surveillance services under regulation 28 of the 1992 Regulations(2);

(b) contraceptive services under regulation 29 of those Regulations(3); or

(c) maternity medical services under regulation 31 of those Regulations(4).

(3) The services required to be provided under this article are in addition to any additional services which are required to be provided to the contractor’s registered patients—

(a) in a default contract under article 16; or

(b) in a general medical services contract under regulation 29 of the 2004 Regulations.

(4) Nothing in this article shall prevent a contractor from subsequently terminating its responsibility for a patient not registered with the contractor under the term of its contract which gives effect to paragraph 28 of Schedule 6 to the 2004 Regulations (or the equivalent term of a default contract).

(5) A requirement in a general medical services contract to provide any additional services under this article to patients not registered with the contractor shall cease on the date on which any opt out of that additional service in respect of the contractor’s own registered patients commences pursuant to the terms of the general medical services contract which give effect to Schedule 3 to the 2004 Regulations.

(6) Where paragraph (5) applies, the requirement to inform patients of opt outs in the term of the general medical services contract which gives effect to paragraph 6 of Schedule 3 to the 2004 Regulations shall apply to the patients to whom services are provided pursuant to this paragraph as it applies to the contractor’s own registered patients.

(1)

Section 29 was amended by the Health Services Act 1980 (c. 53), section 7, the Health and Social Services and Social Security Adjudications Act 1983 (c. 41), Schedule 6, paragraph 2, the Medical Act 1983 (c. 54), Schedule 5, paragraph 16(a), the Health Authorities Act 1995 (c. 17), Schedule 1, paragraph 18, the Medical (Professional Performance) Act 1995 (c. 51), Schedule, paragraph 28(b), the National Health Service (Primary Care) Act 1997 (c. 46), Schedule 2, paragraph 8, the 2001 Act, sections 17 and 23, the 2002 Act, Schedule 2, paragraph 3 and Schedule 8, paragraph 2 and S.I. 1985/39 and 2002/3135. It is to be repealed from 1st April 2004 by section 175(2) of the 2003 Act.

(2)

Regulation 28 was amended by S.I. 2002/2469.

(3)

Regulation 29 was amended by S.I. 1998/682.

(4)

Regulation 31 was amended by S.I. 1998/682 and 2002/2469.