5 February 2021

Dear colleagues,

Thank you for your continued work delivering the COVID-19 vaccination programme across the country. Significant progress has been made in vaccinations for those in the current priority cohorts. Nikki Kanani and Ed Waller have written to local vaccination services yesterday asking that you continue to do all you can to minimise any inequalities in vaccine uptake within JCVI cohorts 1-4 between different patient groups wherever possible. This includes reminding those on your lists in cohorts 1-4 who have not yet come forward of the offer that you will welcome them making an appointment at any time.

Vaccination of housebound patients

The letter also includes information regarding the vaccination of housebound patients. Some patients will need to receive their COVID-19 vaccinations at home because they are housebound, i.e. they are unable to leave their home at all or require significant assistance to leave the house due to illness, frailty, surgery, mental ill health or nearing end of life.

We recognise the additional time and resources needed to deliver COVID vaccinations in a residential setting, in particular as this needs to happen at pace once cohorts are announced, and at the same time as delivering vaccinations at their fixed vaccination sites. In light of this, we are providing an additional supplement of £10 per visit to a housebound patient in order to administer the COVID-19 vaccinations. This supplement is on top of the £12.58 Item of Service fee. Further details are included in the letter.

Kiren and Ned

COVID-19 updates and guidance

Freeing up practices to support COVID vaccination – further details

Following our letter of 7 January 2021, we wrote to GP practices and commissioners this week providing more information. The letter sets out the arrangements for the additional funding for primary care network clinical directors, and the income protection arrangements for the Minor Surgery Direct Enhanced Service (DES) and Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF).

Reporting COVID-19 in those who have been vaccinated

The Public Health England (PHE) Immunisation Department is conducting enhanced surveillance of COVID-19 cases in vaccinated individuals in England. Clinicians who are seeing patients face to face are encouraged to report any confirmed cases in partially or fully vaccinated individuals if they tested positive within the preceding 7 days. This provides an opportunity to get early and complete samples from these cases. Further information is available here.

COVID-19 Vaccination Programme – workspace

General practice

GP access cards – encouraging patient registration

We are aware that some people experience barriers when trying to register with a GP. Despite national restrictions put in place as a response to the coronavirus pandemic, it is still important to encourage GP registration within our communities, to ensure that everyone receives care and is prioritised for the COVID-19 vaccine.

GP access cards are being distributed by local Healthwatch and voluntary organisations to vulnerable communities who are less likely to be registered with a GP. The card, similar in look to a credit card, is accompanied by a welcome to GP letter from Dr Raj Patel and will provide details of how to register.

On the back of the card is the NHS England Customer Contact Centre number, for people to use if they have been refused registration. Practices should not be turning people away who try to register without proof of ID/ address or immigration status. Everyone is welcome in general practice.

To support patients with their GP registration and to encourage people to register, we are asking practices to:

• work together with your local voluntary sector
• support your receptionists to complete bitesize training on the Pathway website
• review websites to include a statement that you can register without ID/address/immigration status
• offer an initial health assessment for new registrants to identify vulnerability to COVID and code as CEV. If homeless use the housing status codes.

More information, including a communications toolkit for practice staff is available to download.

General practice – latest updates

Community pharmacy

Pharmacy Quality Scheme declaration window dates for February 2021

The Pharmacy Quality Scheme (PQS) declaration window opened at 9am today (Thursday 4 February) with a slight delay from it’s scheduled date of Monday 1 February. To ensure contractors have the same amount of time to submit their claims, the PQS declaration window has been extended and will now close on Monday 1 March at 11.59pm.

The date of PQS payment will not be affected. Where a contractor makes a declaration for PQS Part 2 within the new declaration window, and declares that they meet the PQS criteria, they will still receive their PQS 2 payment on 1 April.

Dentistry

Standard operating procedures update

The standard operating procedures for urgent dental care and the dental transition to recovery have been updated with the latest guidance.

Primary care

World Cancer Day

Yesterday (4 February) was World Cancer Day and to mark the occasion healthcare leaders called on the public to speak to their general practice if they are worried about symptoms that could be cancer or concerned about factors that put them at higher risk.

Between March and November 2020, nearly 1.5 million people were urgently referred by their GP with suspected cancer and over 203,000 people started treatment for cancer - 95% of whom started treatment within 31 days. However, the latest NHS data shows fewer people are being referred for help for lung cancer and urological cancers, including prostate cancer, compared to other cancers, because they are not coming forward for help.

Drug Tariff delivery disruption

Dispensing contractors should note that DHSC has advised there has been a discrepancy within the distribution calculations for the supply of the February Drug Tariffs, resulting in a shortfall in the copies printed and available for distribution.

Unfortunately, this may affect you if you signed up to receive a paper copy. If so, the online Drug Tariff is available on the BSA website.

Dates for your diary

Tuesday 9 February, 1pm – 2pm. Remote monitoring using pulse oximetry in care homes

Tuesday 9 February, 4pm – 5.50pm. New Inclusion Health Audit Tool – webinar for primary care networks

Thursday 11 February, 5pm – 6pm. General Practice Webinar with Kiren and Ned (with a COVID-19 vaccination programme update from Nikki and Ed). Please ensure you register to attend by 3pm on 11 February. You do not have to register again if you have booked for our previous GP webinars.

Link of the day

RCGP Research Paper of the Year Award – nominations are now open