The Public Interest Disclosure (Prescribed Persons) (Amendment) Order 2026

Citation, commencement and extent

1. (1) These Regulations may be cited as the National Health Service (Primary Medical Services: Contracts) Regulations 2015 and shall come into force on 1 April 2015.

(2) These Regulations extend to England only.

Interpretation

2. (1) In these Regulations—

“the 2004 Regulations” means the National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 2004;

“the 2005 Regulations” means the National Health Service (Personal Medical Services Agreements) Regulations 2005;

“the 2006 Regulations” means the National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 2006;

“the 2007 Regulations” means the National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 2007;

“the 2008 Regulations” means the National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 2008;

“the 2013 Regulations” means the National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 2013;

“the 2014 Regulations” means the National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 2014;

“apportionment” means apportionment as defined in regulation 105 of the National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 2015;

“area of deprivation” means an area which has a higher than average proportion of the population within the three most deprived quintiles of the most recent deprivation scores published by the Secretary of State;

“Assurance Body” means the NHS England Assurance Body established by section 43A of the Health and Social Care Act 2012;

“the Authority” means the National Health Service Commissioning Board;

“basic contract” means a contract to which regulation 12 applies;

“capitation fee” means a payment made under a contract to a contractor on the basis of the number of individuals ordinarily resident in the contractor’s practice area who are accepted as patients of the contractor;

“complaints procedure” has the meaning given in regulation 17(1);

“contract” means a contract entered into under section 83B of the National Health Service Act 2006;

“contractor” means the person or persons with whom the Secretary of State or a Health Board has entered into a contract;

“contract year” means the period beginning with 1 April in any year and ending with 31 March in the following year;

“deprivation score” means the deprivation score calculated in accordance with the most recent deprivation scores published by the Secretary of State;

“Deputy Chief Executive” means the Deputy Chief Executive of the Authority;

“dispute resolution procedure” means the procedure set out in Schedule 14;

“electronic prescribing practice” means a primary medical services contractor that has been granted approval to electronically prescribe under the National Health Service (Primary Medical Services Reimbursement Arrangements) Regulations 2015;

“exceptional circumstances” means circumstances which are not normal or typical in the context of the delivery of primary medical services;

“fee-based contract” means a contract to which regulation 13 applies;

“Health Board” means a Health Board established under section 2 of the National Health Service (Wales) Act 2006;

“Local Medical Committee” means the committee recognized by the Secretary of State or a Health Board under section 44 of the National Health Service Act 1977 or, as the case may be, section 109 of the Health and Social Care (Community Health and Hospitals) Act 1990, for the area in which the contractor’s place of business is situated;

“Minimum Practice Income Guarantee Scheme” means the scheme established by the Secretary of State for the purpose of making payments to contractors who provide primary medical services in areas of deprivation;

“NHS Business Services Authority” means the body corporate established under that name by the National Health Service Reform and Health Care Professions Act 2002;

“NHS England” means the body corporate established under section 13B of the National Health Service Act 2006;

“NHS pension scheme” means the National Health Service Pension Scheme established under the Superannuation Act 1972;

“nurse practitioner” means a registered nurse who has undertaken further training to extend their scope of practice beyond that of a registered nurse and who is qualified to assess, diagnose, treat and manage patients with a range of conditions;

“out-of-hours services” means services provided under a GMS contract for the provision of out-of-hours services under regulation 35 of the National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 2015;

“partnership” means a partnership governed by the Partnership Act 1890 or a limited liability partnership governed by the Limited Liability Partnerships Act 2000;

“payment notice” means a notice given by the Secretary of State or a Health Board to a contractor under paragraph 42 of Schedule 6 (payments and disputes about payments for this definition, see paragraph 42(9) of Schedule 6);

“person” includes any body corporate or other body of persons, whether corporate or unincorporate;

“place of business” means the premises at which primary medical services are provided under the contract;

“practice area” means the area defined in the list of patients of a contractor;

“practice premises” means the premises at which primary medical services are provided under the contract;

“prescribed” means prescribed in regulations made by the Secretary of State;

“primary medical services” means services of the description in the list in Schedule 1;

“primary medical services contractor” means a contractor who provides primary medical services under a contract;

“primary medical services list” means the list of primary medical services contractors maintained by the Secretary of State or a Health Board under regulation 34;

“quality service” means a service provided by a contractor to which regulation 11 applies, which is intended to improve the quality of primary medical services in the contractor’s practice area;

“registered nurse” means a person registered in Part 1 of the register maintained under article 12 of the Nursing and Midwifery Order 2001;

“register” means the register of contractors maintained by the Secretary of State or a Health Board under regulation 34, and “registered” and “registration” are to be construed accordingly;

“reimbursement arrangements” means the arrangements made by the Secretary of State under section 83F of the National Health Service Act 2006 for the reimbursement of contractors for expenses incurred in the provision of primary medical services;

“Secretary of State” means the Secretary of State for Health;

“sub-contractor” means a person or body who provides primary medical services under a contract to a contractor, and who is not a partner or a person employed by the contractor;

“supplementary services” means services provided under a GMS contract for the provision of supplementary services under regulation 35 of the National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 2015;

“supplementary services contract” means a contract to which regulation 14 applies;

“temporary service” means primary medical services provided by a contractor to an individual who is not on the contractor’s list of patients, in an emergency or where the individual’s usual practitioner is unavailable;

“trust” means a National Health Service trust established under section 5 of the National Health Service Act 1977 or section 18 of the National Health Service Act 2006;

“working day” means any day except a Saturday, a Sunday, Christmas Day, Good Friday or a bank holiday in England under the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971.

(2) A reference to a professional qualification is a reference to a qualification mentioned in Schedule 2.

(3) A reference in these Regulations to a contract is a reference to a contract under section 83B of the National Health Service Act 2006, unless the context otherwise requires.

(4) Unless the context requires otherwise, a reference to a numbered Part, regulation or Schedule is a reference to that Part, regulation or Schedule of these Regulations.

(5) A reference to an enactment includes a reference to that enactment as amended, extended or applied by or under any other enactment.

Contracts to which these Regulations apply

3. (1) These Regulations apply to contracts which the Secretary of State or a Health Board may enter into under section 83B of the National Health Service Act 2006 for the provision of primary medical services.

(2) Paragraph (1) does not apply to a contract which is an alternative form of contract mentioned in Schedule 1 to the National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 2015.

Application of other regulations

4. (1) Subject to paragraph (2), the National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 2015 apply to or in relation to a contract to which these Regulations apply as they apply to or in relation to a contract to which those Regulations apply.

(2) Paragraph (1) does not have effect in relation to—

(a) Part 4 (payments and superannuation) of the National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 2015; or

(b) Schedule 6 (payments and disputes about payments) to the National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 2015.

Transitional and saving provisions

5. (1) The Secretary of State or Health Board may, in relation to a contract entered into under section 83B of the National Health Service Act 2006 before 1st April 2015—

(a) continue to apply the provisions of the 2004 Regulations, the 2005 Regulations, the 2006 Regulations, the 2007 Regulations, the 2008 Regulations, the 2013 Regulations or the 2014 Regulations, as appropriate, to that contract for a period not exceeding 12 months from that date; or

(b) enter into a contract with the contractor for the provision of primary medical services that incorporates the provision of the 2004 Regulations, the 2005 Regulations, the 2006 Regulations, the 2007 Regulations, the 2008 Regulations, the 2013 Regulations or the 2014 Regulations, as appropriate, for a period not exceeding 12 months from that date.

(2) Where the Secretary of State or Health Board applies or enters into a contract under paragraph (1), they must have regard to the requirement in section 83CC(2) of the National Health Service Act 2006 to ensure that the contract reflects the requirements of that section.