GPs have been added to the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS) in a bid to address concerns around the recruitment of doctors, the government has announced.
It said this was an ‘emergency measure’ for 2024-25 and hopes to see the recruitment of more than 1,000 newly qualified GPs.
The news follows calls and a petition to allow ARRS funding to be used for both practice nurses and GPs.
Under the ARRS scheme, primary care networks can claim salary reimbursement for specific roles, including nursing associates and advanced nurse practitioners.
As part of this year’s GP contract, an enhanced practice nurse role was added to the scheme.
However, practice nurses more widely remain excluded.
The government said adding GPs to the scheme would be paid for by £82m from existing budget.
Health and social care secretary Wes Streeting said: ‘This is a first step, as we begin the long-term work of shifting the focus of healthcare out of hospitals and into the community, to fix the front door to the NHS.
‘I want to work with GPs to rebuild our NHS, so it is there for all of us when we need it.’
Dr Amanda Doyle, national director for primary care and community services, said: ‘With hard-working GP teams delivering millions more appointments a month compared to before the pandemic, it is vital they are given the resources to manage this increase in demand.
‘Adding general practitioners to the scheme is something that the profession has been calling for in recent months to make it easier for practices to hire more staff – so I welcome this measure which is an important first step to increasing GP employment in the long-term.’
This is a breaking news story, more to follow
