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BMA: GPs must be allowed to use 084 numbers
24 Feb 09
The BMA has defended GP surgeries’ use of 084 numbers and warned practices must be allowed to see out existing contracts if the numbers are banned.
The association has yet to formally make a submission to the Government’s consultation on the issue, but outlined its response in this month’s GPC newsletter.
The BMA argues: ‘We believe that people should be charged as low a cost as possible to call NHS services, but this has to be balanced by the quality of service the patients are accessing.’
‘Many practices value the extra functions that a number such as 084 and 03 numbers can provide, as they want to improve access to patients by providing telephone numbers with extra functionality.’
The BMA also called for a ‘voluntary’ switch for practices to revert to local numbers.
‘Our main concern is that when the new telephone systems were put in with the new 084 numbers, many surgeries had to sign up to a long contract and even if they want to change, they cannot at the moment due to contractual obligation.’
‘If the Government decides to use to ban the use of 084 numbers, the Department of Health should ensure that practices are allowed to serve out the terms of their contract if 084 numbers are banned.’
The Department of Health consultation closes on 31 March.
Readers' comments
So the BMA believes that NHS patients should pay for improved NHS services, although "as low as cost as possible".
Revenue sharing 084 numbers mean that what patients pay is shared between their telephone company (fair enough) and the person they are calling.
There is no reason why GPs could not serve out their contracts for telephone service from Opal Telecom (part of the Carphone Warehouse Group) on 0344 numbers. These cost no more to call from any type of phone than a local number.
This would mean that all NHS GPs would be paying the cost of running their surgery telephone systems, without payment by patients, as most do already.
Do BMA members agree that NHS GP services should be "free at the point of need" for all, or should some be granted an exemption?
Practices mostly shifted to 084 numbers for cost advantages as they did not want to pay for additional services. When the pendulum swings the other way now they should bite the bullet and plough back the profits by forfeiting the rest of the contract. BMA`s stance on this is very suspicious considering that they did next to nothing when less well off junior doctors got shafted by MMC fiasco. This is also very bad PR for GP`s. many patients have only mobile phones and calling these from mobile phones cost a great deal more than from landlines.