Processing headache for free GP care for under 6s

The HSE faces the headache of processing over a quarter of a million applications for free GP care for children under six by July.

Following a deal struck with doctors to offer the free visits, parents of some 270,000 children under six will have to register their children’s details online to qualify. However, confusion surrounds just what information will be required as proof of age.

The Department of Health confirmed yesterday that the HSE was planning to commence patient registration towards the end of next month “using an online facility” and that the public will be notified in advance of what is involved.

Given the Government has promised to introduce free GP care for this age group by July, that leaves just over one month to register more than 250,000 children.

Under the deal, doctors will be allowed decide for themselves whether to sign up to treat under-sixes, which is set to cost the State €67m.

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Incoming Irish Medical Organisation president Dr Ray Walley said the patient registration details had yet to be hammered out, but that GPs’ own computers would “probably link in to it”.

He said parents would have to choose a GP to register their child with.

Dr Walley, who was attending the IMO’s AGM in Kilkenny yesterday, said so far he had positive feedback from individual GPs.

“We have a national GP meeting today. On top of that we will be embarking on a national tour to explain the details,” he said, adding that negotiators believed it was a good contract.

“We brought it to our GP national committee, it was unanimously supported. We believe it is a viable contract. It is only a first step in bringing resources back to general practice.”

Leo Varadkar, the health minister, who will attend the IMO conference today, said that doctors had done “the right thing for general practice and for patients, and history will remember you for it”.

“This is, after all, the widest extension in eligibility in healthcare service since Erskine Childers brought in the first GMS contract almost half a century ago and wider than the Mother and Child Scheme before that,” he said.

Free GP visits have also been extended to all over-70s, which will bring another 36,000 into the net, but because this age group is already catered for under the general medical services contract, it will not require the same level of administration.

GPs who treat private patients only will not be required to sign up to the deal and GPs with existing GMS contracts who feel they are already overstretched can also opt out. Dr Walley said a GP would be able to close the list “if they feel they don’t have the resources”.

Doctors will be paid a basic capitation fee of €125 for every child under six they take on and a capitation fee of €271 for every new patient over 70.

Dublin GP Dr Garrett McGovern, who specialises in treating drug addiction, said the contract negotiations that led to the extension of free GP care was “about the money”.

“All these things are about money. Resources are about money. I think GPs would be lying if they said it was just about patient care, of course it was about money. Should you apologise for that? No, I don’t think so, but you should be honest about it,” he said.

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