Practices will have their full CQC fees reimbursed following the negotiation of the new GP contract.
The average size practice currently pays around £2,500 in CQC fees, rising to £4,800 next year.
Practices will be required to submit their paid invoice to NHS England or their CCG and will then be paid back the full amount through a new system of direct reimbursement.
Differing from last year, the fee reimbursement will be separate to the global sum and therefor not weighted with the Carr-Hill formula.
The change will likely lead a slight reduction in the global sum, as last year’s contract included £15m to pay for the increase in fees, the General Practitioners Committee (GPC) said.
The possible reduction will be made up for by other changes announced in the contract, however, including £156.7m being put into core funding from the scrapping of the unplanned admissions DES.
Last year the Department of Health agreed to cover the 250% increase in fees but the new agreement means that the entire cost will be reimbursed for the first time.
Dr Chaand Nagpaul wrote in a letter to GPs: ‘We have secured, for the first time, full reimbursement of practices’ total CQC fees.
‘Although the GP Forward View suggested compensating practices for future CQC fee increases, we have gone further and negotiated that the entire CQC practice fee will be reimbursed for 2017-18.
‘This means that CQCs recently announced exorbitant fees rises will not impact on practices, since the total CQC cost will be paid for by NHS England,’ he said.
