Setting budgets for general practice in the new NHS

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Abstract
The centre of the new arrangements for the NHS is the establishment of primary care groups.1 Budgetary control will be a central concern of these new groups, and the principal instrument for securing that control will be the setting of an indicative budget for each general practice within a primary care group. Although this measure may go some way towards securing the required control, I believe that setting practice level budgets carries potentially serious adverse consequences. This article sets out the problems that health authorities and primary care group management will have to be alert to. #### Summary points Primary care groups will be based on all the practices within a geographically defined area covering a population of about 100 000. The groups will receive annual budgets, within which they will be expected to meet virtually all the health care needs of their population. The size of the budget will be determined by the health authority in which the primary care group lies and will be guided by a long term expenditure target set by the NHS …