This is the Department of Health’s ‘response’ to my second email to Jeremy Hunt:
Our ref: DE00000813924
Dear Dr Farrelly,
Thank you for your further correspondence of 13 October to health ministers about the removal of GP boundaries in six primary care trust (PCT) areas . I have been asked to reply.
I am sorry that you were dissatisfied with the Department’s previous response (our ref: DE00000807059). However, there is little I can add on the matter.
With many people working some distance from home, it is not always convenient for them to see a GP in the area in which they live. The piloting arrangements were introduced to allow patients, who wished to do so, to register with a practice away from the area where they live, perhaps closer to where they work. Arrangements are in place to ensure that, should patients wish to register away from home, they are still able to access primary medical services should they need them when at home.
The arrangements were trialled in a limited number of areas and the results have been evaluated and passed to NHS England. It will be for that body to decide whether they wish to roll out the arrangements on a wider basis. Should you wish to raise your concerns with NHS England, you can do so at the following address:
NHS England
PO Box 16738
Redditch B97 9PT
Tel: 0300 311 22 33
Email: england.contactus@nhs.net
I am sorry I cannot be more helpful on this occasion.
Yours sincerely,
Lindsey Cox
Ministerial Correspondence and Public Enquiries
Department of Health
