This is interesting:
The NHS in England is to undergo a radical reorganisation, with GPs commissioning most services and the abolition of primary care trusts and strategic health authorities.
The government’s white paper contains far reaching proposals that devolve power from central government to patients and doctors. Reaction to the proposals has been mixed, with one concern being whether GPs will be given enough support to take on their new expanded role. Another worry is that such large scale change is risky at a time when huge efficiency savings have to be made.
A key plank of the white paper is that all general practices must join a consortium that will commission the majority of care for their patients. It is anticipated that GP consortiums will hold around 80% of the total NHS budget. The white paper states that the new model is “neither a recreation of GP fundholding nor a complete rejectionof practice-based commissioning.”
I’m far from an expert on the NHS, but this sounds similar to a primary care physician based ACO concept.
