General Practice Services: Free for Children

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A decision made 24 July 2023:

Decision Reference: MD-SOSEC-2023-489		Public
Subject: Free GP appointments for children
Report Title: Children's Health Care Services		Public
Decision(s): In response to the 18th Amendment to the 2023-2026 Government Plan (P.97 Amendment (18)), the Minister for Social Security decided to introduce this new scheme, which will provide free access for eligible children to General Practice Services.
Reason for Decision(s): This scheme, to provide free GP services for all eligible children, irrespective of family income, has been developed to meet the commitment made by the States Assembly on 14 December 2022, when P97 Amendment (18) was adopted. Options for the Children’s Healthcare service were initially developed by the Minister for Health and Social Services. It was agreed that implementation of the service should be passed to the Minister for Social Security to be administered by Customer and Local Services, building on administration systems and contractual arrangements which have already been established. Whereas the original proposition requested a transfer of money from the Health Insurance Fund to the Health and Community Services department, the transfer from HCS to CLS enables the service to be funded directly from the Health Insurance Fund and administered alongside other General Practice services.
Resource Implications: The Children’s Health Care Services agreement will be administered by existing resource within Customer and Local Services. P.97 Amendment (18) originally proposed an estimated budget of £800,000, however considering inflation and the service design to include additional services the budget required is likely to exceed £1 million. Systems development has been undertaken to support an efficient payment process and allow information regarding the service to be collected. This development required a non-recurring budget of £15,000. The Children's Health Care Service will operate under an agreement spanning 2 years (2023-2025).
Action Required: Department to take necessary action.
Signature:	Signed By: Minister for Social Security
Date Signed:	Date of Decision (If different from Date Signed):