BUDGET 2016: Free GP care plan challenged by unions

Critics: No resources to extend plan to 200,000 children aged 5 to 11

The Government’s ambitious plan to extend free GP care to another 200,000 children, a central plank of yesterday’s health budget, is already under fire from the main medical unions.

The proposal, which Junior Health Minister Kathleen Lynch said was estimated to cost €40m in a full year, would entitle children aged 6-11 to free visits to the family doctor towards the end of next year.

However, she conceded that its introduction was “absolutely subject to negotiation and agreement with the Irish Medical Organisation” (IMO).

The IMO, which represents the majority of the country’s GPs, immediately criticised the proposal, with GP committee chairman Pádraig McGarry saying they “could hardly cater for the current population” and there was “no capacity to handle further cohorts of patients without resources”.

The National Association of General Practitioners (NAGP), which the Department of Health has excluded from contract negotiations to date, called for an impact report assessing the effects of extending free GP care to under-sixes and over-70s “before millions more euro is invested” introducing new patient cohorts.

Both groups called for a new contract to replace the existing 40-year-old contract before further workload can be agreed.

Health Minister Leo Varadkar said they were committed to negotiating a new contract within the Memorandum of Understanding already agreed with the IMO. Ms Lynch said they would not be including the NAGP in negotiations.

Responding to IMO concerns that doctors did not have the capacity to take on a new patient cohort under the free GP care scheme, Mr Varadkar said 5- to 11-year-olds had the lowest GP attendance rate.

He said it had “always been the case” that the capitation fee paid to doctors for this age group was lower but that he had “no doubt the IMO will drive a hard bargain”. Mr Varadkar said when he had announced the plan to offer free GP care to under-sixes last year, he had been “met with a wall of skepticism from the press corps” but it had come to pass.

The 6- to 11-year-olds would also be entitled to an asthma cycle of care under the proposals. The minister said there are also plans to expand GP access to diagnostic services and to allow more GPs offer minor surgery procedures.

A number of child therapies are also set to receive a boost. Mr Varadkar said €8mhas been earmarked for, inter alia, speech and language therapy and occupational therapy.

Last year, charity Inclusion Ireland published a report showing that almost 3,000 children had been waiting more than 12 months for speech and language therapy and almost another 2,000 had waited more than 12 months for assessments.

Mr Varadkar said funding will be allocated to expand the availability of speech and language therapy at primary care level, as well as the reorganisation and expansion of speech and language and other therapies under the Progressing Disability Services Programme for Children and Young People.

This will include the development of early intervention services to facilitate children with a disability in mainstream preschool settings.

Funding will also be provided for a maternity strategy which Mr Varadkar has already said will be modelled on the highly successful cancer control strategy with the leadership and authority to drive reform and standardise care across all 19 maternity units. Additional obstetricians/gynaecologists and midwives will also be recruited.