Healthcare Accountancy – Update Covid-19 Fund
On 4th August NHS England issued a letter to GP practices explaining how the Covid-19 fund will be made available to GP Practices.
GP surgeries can now claim reimbursements for additional costs incurred between 23rd of March and 31st of July, relating to the pandemic; specifically, staff and partner absenteeism and the cost of other net additional costs. This includes items such as:
Additional clinical equipment required to deal with the pandemic such as Oximeters metres and digital thermometers etc,
The cost of minor physical adjustments to buildings such as Perspex screens and barriers, and,
Additional cleaning materials
The cost of bank holiday opening on Good Friday and Easter Monday and the May Bank Holiday at the following rates: sessional GPs up to a maximum of £250 per session or £500 per day, over time pathology GPs in line with their contractual arrangements, up to £299 per session for GP partners for up to 2 additional sessions and overtime for other GP practice staff in line with their contractual arrangements.
The cost of staff absenteeism is from day one of absence where it was required to maintain clinical capacity and if the staff could not work from home. These costs can be claimed for the period 23rd of March to 31st of July.
The cost of providing support to care homes as described in the NHS letter to surgeries, surgeries can claim for these costs until the end of September.
It was also announced in this letter that the DHS see will also provide funding to cover the costs of personal protective equipment purchased by surgeries. No date was given as to when these PPE claims can be made however, they mentioned that this will be soon.
Many practices have already submitted claims and the local agreements for additional costs relating to dealing with the pandemic, however, if these claims were outside the scope announced in the letter additional bounce may need to be repaid. In the appendix to the letter, the NHS said ‘commissioners may require an appropriate portion claims to be repaid or set off against practice global sum or such other monies due under the GP contract if the funding was outside the terms of this guidance’, however the commissioners have been given some leeway as the appendix went on to say “commissioners should consider every exceptional circumstance in making these judgements. In assessing support”.
Claims that need to be dealt with quickly as surgeries were given a six-week window from 4 August to make their claims
