National Health Service (Primary Care) Act 1997

The National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978 (c. 29)S

32SThe 1978 Act is amended in accordance with paragraphs 33 to 60.

34SIn section 12A, after subsection (4) insert—

“(4A)The functions of an NHS trust also include power to provide services in accordance with section 17C arrangements, and to do so as a member of a qualifying body (within the meaning of section 17D).”

35SIn section 15(1)(a)—

(a)after “persons” insert “—

(i)”; and

(b)after “Part II” insert “; or

(ii)providing, in accordance with section 17C arrangements, personal medical services, personal dental services or other services of a kind that may be provided under this Part or Part III,”.

36SIn section 17A(2), at the end insert “ and in this Act “health service body” means any of those persons or bodies ”.

37S[F2After section 17G insert—

17H“ Immunisation.

Where the Secretary of State arranges with medical practitioners for the vaccination or immunisation of persons against any disease, he shall so far as reasonably practicable give every person providing, and every medical practitioner performing, personal medical services in accordance with section 17C arrangements an opportunity to participate in the arrangements for vaccination or immunisation.”]

38SAfter section 17H insert—

“17I Use of accommodation.

If the Secretary of State considers that any accommodation provided by him by virtue of this Act is suitable for use in connection with the provision of personal medical services or personal dental services in accordance with section 17C arrangements, he may make the accommodation available on such terms as he thinks fit to persons providing those services.”

39[F3(1)Section 19 is amended as follows.S

(2)In subsection (2), omit paragraphs (b) and (c).

(3)For subsection (8) substitute—

“(8)In relation to a Part II medical practitioner—

(a)whose name is included in the list of only one Health Board, and

(b)who practises on his own or in partnership with others all of whom are Part II medical practitioners whose names are included only in that Board’s list,

any reference in this Act to the relevant Health Board is to be construed as a reference to that Board.

(9)In relation to a medical practitioner who is not within subsection (8), any reference in this Act to the relevant Health Board is to be construed as a reference to the Board in whose area most of the practice patients live.

(10)In this section—

• “Part II medical practitioner” means a medical practitioner who provides general medical services under Part II and does not perform personal medical services under section 17C arrangements; and

• “practice patient” means—

  (a)

  in relation to a medical practitioner who practises otherwise than in partnership, an individual who is on that practitioner’s list of patients (or, if that practitioner and one or more other medical practitioners together have a single list of patients in connection with section 17C arrangements, an individual who is on that single list);

  (b)

  in relation to a medical practitioner who is one of two or more practitioners who practise in partnership with each other, an individual who is on the list of patients of any of those practitioners (or, if any of those practitioners together have a single list of patients in connection with section 17C arrangements, an individual who is on that single list).”]

43SOmit section 25(2)(c).

44SIn section 27(1), for “in this Act referred to” substitute “ , together with additional pharmaceutical services provided in accordance with a direction under section 27A, referred to in this Act ”.

45SIn section 28(2)(b), after “that” insert “ (i) ”, and after “arrangements” insert “, and

(ii)all additional pharmaceutical services provided in accordance with a direction under section 27A,”.

47SIn section 73(b), after “providing” insert “ personal dental services in accordance with section 17C arrangements or ”.

48SIn section 74(b), after “providing” insert “ personal dental services in accordance with section 17C arrangements or ”.

49SIn section 75, for paragraph (b) substitute—

“(b)for the purposes of section 70(1A) in relation to appliances provided as part of—

(i)general dental services, or

(ii)personal dental services provided in accordance with section 17C arrangements,

may provide for the reduction of the sums which would otherwise be payable by a Health Board to the persons by whom those services are provided by the amount of the charges authorised by section 70(1A) in respect of those appliances.”

50SIn section 75A(1)(a), after “section 70(1) or (1A) above” insert “ , section 70A(1) above ”.

51SIn section 77(1), references to functions conferred or imposed by or under the 1978 Act are to be construed as including references to functions conferred or imposed in relation to pilot schemes by or under this Act; and references to regulations, schemes, proposals and directions are accordingly to be construed as including regulations, schemes, proposals or directions under this Act.

52SIn section 78, the reference to a function conferred by or under the 1978 Act is to be construed as including a reference to a function conferred in relation to pilot schemes by or under this Act.

53(1)Section 87A is amended as follows.S

(2)In subsection (1), after “section 19”, insert “ , or (in the case of practitioners who are not employed by another person) personal medical services in accordance with section 17C arrangements, ”.

(3)In subsection (4), for paragraph (g) substitute—

“(g)the operation of this section in a case where one or more of the medical practitioners wishing to make an application under subsection (1) is also—

(i)on the medical list of a Health Authority established under section 8 of the M1National Health Service Act 1977; or

(ii)providing personal medical services in accordance with arrangements made under section 28C of that Act;”.

54(1)Section 87B is amended as follows.S

(2)In subsection (3)(b), for “individuals on the lists of patients of any of the members of the practice” substitute “ practice patients ”.

(3)In subsection (5)(b)—

(a)after “general medical services” insert “ or personal medical services provided in accordance with section 17C arrangements ”; and

(b)for “individuals on the lists of patients of the members of the practice” substitute “ practice patients ”.

(4)After subsection (6) insert—

“(7)In this section “practice patient”, in relation to a recognised fund-holding practice, means an individual who is on the list of patients of any of the members of the practice (or, if any of those members together have a single list of patients in connection with section 17C arrangements, an individual who is on that single list).”

56SIn section 88(1)(d) and (2)(e), after “section 22” insert “ or by regulations which make provision in relation to section 17C arrangements of a kind that may be made by regulations under section 22 ”.

57S[F6In section 108, insert at the appropriate places—

““health service body” means a person or body specified in section 17A(2);”;

““medical list” has the meaning given by section 19A(6);”;

““personal dental services” has the meaning given in section 17C(6);”;

[F7““personal medical services” (except in section 19) has the meaning given in section 17C(6);”];

““section 17C arrangements” has the same meaning as in section 17E(9);”.]

58(1)In Schedule 8, paragraph 8 is amended as follows.S

(2)In sub-paragraph (2), after “sub-paragraph (1)(c) above” insert “ as it has effect in relation to the functions mentioned below ”.

(3)After sub-paragraph (2) insert—

“(2A)In sub-paragraph (1)(c) above as it has effect in relation to functions of the Tribunal conferred by or under any enactment relating to the preferential treatment of medical practitioners on transferring to medical lists, the reference to the person concerned is a reference to the medical practitioner to whom the matter before the Tribunal relates.”

59(1)Schedule 9 is amended as follows.S

(2)In paragraph 1(1) and (3), omit “, or any part of the goodwill,”.

(3)In paragraph 1, for sub-paragraph (2) substitute—

“(2)Any person proposing to be a party to a transaction or series of transactions which he thinks might amount to a sale of the goodwill of a medical practice in contravention of section 35(1) may ask the Medical Practices Committee for a certificate under this paragraph.”

(4)In paragraph 1, omit sub-paragraph (8).

(5)In paragraph 2, for sub-paragraph (1) substitute—

“(1)For the purposes of section 35(1) and paragraph 1, a disposal of premises previously used for the purposes of a medical practice shall be deemed to be a sale of the goodwill of a medical practice if—

(a)the person disposing of the premises did so knowing that another person (“A”) intended to use them for the purposes of A’s medical practice; and

(b)the consideration for the disposal substantially exceeded the consideration that might reasonably have been expected if the premises had not previously been used for the purposes of a medical practice.

(1A)If a person disposes of any premises together with any other property, the court shall, for the purposes of sub-paragraph (1), make such apportionment of the consideration as it thinks just.

(1B)For the purposes of sub-paragraphs (1) and (1A)—

(a)“disposal” means any sale, letting or other form of disposal (whether by a single transaction or a series of transactions) and “disposes” and “disposing” are to be read accordingly; and

(b)a person who procures the disposal of any premises is to be treated as having disposed of them.”

(6)In paragraph 2(2)—

(a)omit “between medical practitioners”; and

(b)omit “, or part of the goodwill,”.

(7)In paragraph 2, for sub-paragraph (3) substitute—

“(3)Sub-paragraph (3A) applies if a person (“the assistant”)—

(a)performs services on behalf of a person who carries on a medical practice (or as an employee of a person employing a practitioner who carries on a medical practice);

(b)receives substantially less remuneration for performing those services than might reasonably have been expected, having regard to the circumstances at the time when the remuneration was fixed; and

(c)subsequently succeeds, whether as a result of a partnership agreement or otherwise, to that practice.

(3A)For the purposes of section 35 and paragraph 1, a sale of the goodwill of the practice is to be deemed to have taken place (at the time when the remuneration was fixed), unless it is proved that the remuneration was not fixed in contemplation of the assistant’s succeeding to the practice.”

(8)In paragraph 2, for sub-paragraphs (4) and (5) substitute—

“(4)For the purposes of section 35(1) and paragraph 1, the goodwill of a medical practice shall be deemed to have been sold if—

(a)a person carrying on the practice (or employing a practitioner who carries on a medical practice) agrees, for valuable consideration—

(i)to do or refrain from doing any act, for the purpose of facilitating the succession of another person to the practice; or

(ii)to allow any act to be done, for that purpose; or

(b)a person—

(i)gives valuable consideration to a person carrying on the practice (or employing a practitioner who carries on a medical practice); and

(ii)succeeds, or has previously succeeded, to the practice.

(5)Sub-paragraph (4) does not apply—

(a)if it is proved that no part of the consideration was given in respect of the goodwill; or

(b)to anything done—

(i)in relation to the acquisition of premises for the purposes of a medical practice;

(ii)in pursuance of a partnership agreement; or

(iii)in the performance of medical services by one person as an assistant to another.”

(9)In paragraph 2, for sub-paragraph (7) substitute—

“(7)For the purposes of section 35 and this Schedule—

(a)consideration is deemed to be given to a person (“B”) if—

(i)it is given to another person but with B’s knowledge and consent; and

(ii)it appears to the court that B has derived, or will derive, a substantial benefit from the giving of the consideration; and

(b)unless the context otherwise requires, references to a person include, in the case of an individual who has died, references to his personal representative.”

(10)At the end insert—

“ Carried-over goodwillS

3The fact that a person’s medical practice was previously carried on by another person who at any time provided general medical services or personal medical services does not, by itself, make it unlawful under section 35(1) for the goodwill of his practice to be sold.”

60SIn Schedule 11, in paragraph 1(1)(b), after “drug or medicine” insert “ (otherwise than in accordance with section 17C arrangements) ”.