​GP's have now been given until the 5th of June to decide whether they will be taking part in the Government's new scheme which will provide free GP care to children under the age of six.

GP's originally had until Monday June 1st to decide whether they would be participating in the new initiative, but have now had the deadline in which they can sign the necessary contracts extended until the following Friday.

Commenting on the implications that not signing the contract will have,  Dr. Padraig McGarry of the IMO said: "GPs who have not signed up to the contract will be paid for such patients on current GMS rates and not on the new rates applicable to the under-six contract."

In addition to this, it has been noted that patients, whose doctors have not signed the contract, will not be reassigned to a GP who has decided to participate in the new scheme during summer.

The healthcare reform, which has been opposed by the National Association of General Practitioners, has divided family doctors around the country, with the NAGP's chairman, Dr. Andy Jordan, asserting: "With hundreds of patients on trolleys in our emergency departments every day and medical cards being removed from or denied to cancer patients, it is not appropriate to invest scarce public funds into providing free care to any group of people who do not have a genuine medical or financial need."

The IMO have, however, insisted that the HSE have addressed GP concerns on the key issues, saying: "The HSE has now written to the IMO to confirm that it agrees with the IMO’s legal advice and that the advice may be regarded as ‘contractually binding and may be relied upon by under-six contract holders and the IMO."

On Friday May 22nd, GP's were issued with a warning which stated that they would be in breach of competition law should they share their intentions regarding the under-six contract with fellow doctors.


 

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