View all news

Test your knowledge

Questions from our primary care helpdesk. Do you agree with our answers? See the link below.

Dentistry
Pensions

An individual contract holder wants to take partial retirement, they are in the 1995 scheme. Do they need to retire from their contract?

Medical
Parental leave

Maternity reimbursement payments where a practice GP is on parental leave. We have been working on the basis that all maternity claims are only payable up to 26 weeks. Policy and Guidance Manual (PGM) page 410 and a discretionary payment is applicable if the practice meets certain criteria- PGM page 413.

However the “up to 26 weeks” is not in the statement of financial entitlements (SFE).
Can you please confirm if maternity payments in regard to locum reimbursement can go beyond 26 weeks and is non-discretionary?

Sickness payments

A GP at a practice has taken sick leave four times in the past year so far, each time for a two-week period. Because of the two-week period, the practice has not claimed for locum cover – as reimbursement starts after two weeks.

Could this sickness be treated as one long sickness period, it relates to the same condition?

Pharmaceutical services
Superintendent pharmacist

Is there a limit as to how many companies a pharmacist can be the superintendent of?
Application to change directors and superintendent.

Can the pharmaceutical services regulations committee (PSRC) refuse an application to change the directors and superintendent of a body corporate?

Eyecare
Dispensing only optometry services

How do we contract with an NHS dispensing only optometry service?

Premises
Rent review appeal

A contractor initially accepted their notional rent offer but 12 weeks later have submitted an appeal. Are they within their rights to submit an appeal even after accepting the rent offer?

For answers to these questions see here.

Our contracting helpdesk is open to commissioners who are annual contract holders with helpdesk included in their contract. For details on annual contracts visit https://www.pcc-cic.org.uk/annual-contracts/ or contact enquiries@pcc-cic.org.uk.

Last Updated on 30 January 2024