The BMA’s Annual Representative Meeting took place in Belfast from 23-25 June.
Notable resolutions passed included those calling for:
- Capita to be sanctioned for its failures to properly run Primary Care Support England, a tax amnesty for GPs incurring penalties due to Capita’s mistakes, compensation for doctors who have become ill due to Capita’s errors and compensation for those who have not been able to retire.
- More funding to meet the objectives of the NHS Long Term Plan, including for proportionate funding to follow activity transferred from hospitals to community-based services.
- An end to monitoring eligibility for access to NHS care, which is not on cost-effectiveness grounds and an end to charging migrants for NHS care.
- NHS services to be kept out of future international trade deals, NHS patient information not to be used for commercial services and the establishment of an open register of private contracts issued by the NHS.
- Private providers to be made to treat a representative case mix, rather than just low risk patients, to have their outcomes compared to the NHS and to lose their contracts and be barred from future ones, if their standard of care is below that of the NHS.
- Greater regulation of non-medical members of the clinical workforce, while recognising the contribution they make.
- Pension reforms including changes to the restrictions on annual and lifetime allowances, and the option for NHS employees to use other pension schemes.
- The BMA to poll members on whether to change its position on assisted dying to one of neutrality.
The above is a summary; details of all resolutions passed and their exact wording can be downloaded here.
Last updated : 16 Jul 2019