Jersey’s Minister for Social Security, Deputy Elaine Millar, has announced a new scheme offering free appointments for children visiting their GP. This service delivers on the commitment made last December by the States Assembly to introduce free services for children.
The scheme provides free face-to-face surgery consultations with GPs, nurses, paramedics, pharmacists and healthcare assistants who are employed by the practice. Telephone and video consultations are also included. Home visits and consultations at the out of hours service (JDOC) are not included.
This service is funded through the Health Insurance Fund for children and young people aged 0 to 17. It also allows children to access a range of additional services free of charge including; blood and urine tests, referral letters, ECGs, swabs, spirometry, ear syringing and pregnancy tests.
It follows on from last month’s launch of the new service to reduce the cost of GP consultations by £20 for all Islanders and runs alongside the Health Access Scheme, which significantly subsidises the cost of services for people living on a low income.
Minister for Social Security, Deputy Elaine Millar said: “The Health Access Scheme has provided free surgery visits for children from low income families for over two years. I am now pleased to introduce this new scheme for children, which reduces costs for all families and young people – making it free for all children to see a health practitioner at their general practice.
“This is the latest in a series of schemes which have been introduced to make primary care services more accessible and invest in the health and well-being of Islanders.”
The Primary Care Body, representing the island’s GPs, commented: “We are delighted to support this important project which means that children and young people will be able to access GP services without worrying about fees. General Practice continues to be the cornerstone of health services both locally and further afield. This joint commitment ensures that we can continue to provide high quality family medicine whilst removing barriers.”
