GP contracts in £160m overspend

The auditor general's report pointed to a 'lack of basic management data' The new GP contract, which allowed most doctors to stop doing out of hours calls, cost £160m more than had been allocated in its first three years. An Audit Scotland report into the contracts found that the scheme should have been better planned. But it added that there were early signs that patients benefitted in areas like monitoring and flexibility. New GPs contracts were brought in four years ago and have seen the average GP's income rise 38% in two years. Auditor General for Scotland Robert Black said: "There are early signs that the contract has addressed GP concerns about pay and work life balance, and has improved services for some patients. "However, there was insufficient planning for implementing this contract, partly due to a lack of... [read full story]