The National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts and Personal Medical Services Agreements) (Amendment) Regulations 2016

PART 3 Amendment of the PMS Agreements Regulations

Amendments of regulation 60 of the PMS Agreements Regulations

5.  In regulation 60 of the PMS Agreements Regulations (patient records)—

(a) for paragraph (6) substitute—

“(6) Where a patient on the contractor’s list of patients dies, the contractor must send the complete records relating to that patient to the Board—

(a) in a case where the contractor was informed by the Board of that patient’s death, before the end of the period of 14 days beginning with the date on which the contractor was so informed; or

(b) in any other case, before the end of the period of one month beginning with the date on which the contractor learned of that patient’s death.

(6A) Where a patient on a contractor’s list of patients has registered with another provider of primary medical services and the contractor receives a request from that provider for the complete records relating to that patient, the contractor must send to the Board—

(a) the complete records, or any part of the records, sent via the GP2GP facility in accordance with regulation 62 for which the contractor does not receive confirmation of safe and effective transfer via that facility; and

(b) any part of the records held by the contractor only in paper form.

(6B) Where a patient on a contractor’s list of patients—

(a) is removed from that list at that patient’s request under paragraph 22 of Schedule 2, or by reason of the application of any of paragraphs 23 to 30 of that Schedule; and

(b) the contractor has not received a request from another provider of medical services with which that patient has registered for the transfer of the complete records relating to that patient,

the contractor must send a copy of those records to the Board.

(6C) Where a contractor’s responsibility for a patient terminates in accordance with paragraph 31 of Schedule 2, the contractor must send any records relating to that patient that it holds to—

(a) if known, the provider of primary medical services with which that patient is registered; or

(b) in all other cases, the Board.

(6D) For the purposes of this regulation, “GP2GP facility” has the same meaning as in paragraph (2) of regulation 62.”;

(b) omit paragraph (7); and

(c) omit paragraph (8).

Amendment of regulation 61 of the PMS Agreements Regulations

6.  In regulation 61 of the PMS Agreements Regulations (Summary Care Record), in paragraph (1) for “at least on a daily basis” substitute “when the change occurs”.

Insertion of new regulation 67A into the PMS Agreements Regulations

7.  After regulation 67 of the PMS Agreements Regulations (provision of information) insert—

“Provision of information: GP access data

67A.— (1) Subject to paragraph (4), a contractor must collect such information relating to patient access to primary medical services at the contractor’s practice (“GP access data”) as the Board may reasonably require for the purposes of, or in connection with, the contract.

(2) The contractor must submit an online return to the Board in respect of any GP access data collected by it using the Primary Care Web Tool (“PCWT”) facility(1) which is provided by the Board to the contractor for this purpose.

(3) The contractor must submit an online return of GP access data to the Board twice in every financial year—

(a) by 31st October 2016 and 31st March 2017 in respect of the financial year that ends on 31st March 2017; and

(b) by 30th September and 31st March respectively for each subsequent financial year until 31st March 2021.

(4) The requirements of this regulation do not apply where the contractor does not have access to computer systems and software which would enable it to use the PCWT facility to submit an online return of GP access data to the Board.”.

(1)

The “PCWT facility” is the approved internet webtool made available by NHS England to contractors for the purposes of submitting GP access data online.