Audit Commission Report On Gp Fundholding

EDM number 927 in 1995-96, proposed by Hugh Bayley on 22/05/1996.

That this House welcomes the Audit Commission's report What The Doctor Ordered; notes that this is the first objective analysis of the effectiveness of general practitioner fundholding; expresses concern at the Audit Commission's conclusion that the administrative cost of fundholding is greater than savings it had achieved for improving patient care; expresses concern at the finding that few fundholders are using clinical audit and patient outcome information to target their health spending on treatments which work; recalls the Health Committee's concern about the lack of accountability of general practitioner fundholders and its recommendation that fundholders should be required to sign up to a local health strategy agreed with their health authority before gaining access to their budget; welcomes the Audit Commission's proposal for improving the accountability framework for fundholding and its recommendation that fundholders should take account of their health authority's local health priorities in their plans; recognises that general practitioner-led local commissioning, involving fundholding and non-fundholding general practitioners, is addressing these problems and appears to be delivering clinically effective and cost-effective treatment for patients; calls upon the Department of Health to fund independent research into the effectiveness of general practitioner commissioning; and calls upon the Leader of the House to schedule a debate on the Audit Commissioner's Report on general practitioner fundholding in Government time.

This motion has been signed by a total of 65 MPs.