Doctors’ Association UK (DAUK) and Medical Defense Society have launched a new initiative to reimburse GMC fees paid by GPs during their parental leave.
Under the scheme, GPs who have paid GMC fees during a period of parental leave will receive an equivalent credit against their Medical Defense Society membership payments.
The initiative is available to new and existing Medical Defense Society members and applies retrospectively to doctors who have taken parental leave within the previous 12 months.
DAUK campaign
It follows DAUK’s campaign over the GMC’s policy of charging registration fees during parental leave.
Currently, the GMC annual retention fee is £481. It offers a 50% discount if a doctor’s total annual income falls below £37,000.
In contrast, royal colleges typically waive or reduce fees, and the BMA offers a reduced rate.
The initiative is open to GPs, GP partners and locum GPs.
Parental leave
Dr Matt Kneale, DAUK co-chair, said: “Doctors should not be penalised financially for taking their statutory entitled parental leave.
“We have consistently raised our concerns about the continued charging of GMC fees during parental leave, which we feel is unfair and may disproportionately impact women.
“We are pleased to have worked with Medical Defense Society to develop this initiative which recognises the importance of new parents being able to bond with their child, while helping to ease the financial pressures faced by GPs at a significant moment in their lives.
“This is a first step and we hope to work with more providers in the future to widen access and reduce the burden of these unnecessary fees.
“In the meantime, we continue to call for doctors on maternity, paternity, shared parental or adoption leave, to have their GMC fee reduced in proportion to the period of leave.”
Financially disadvantaged
Rohan Simon, CEO of Medical Defense Society, said: “GPs should not be financially disadvantaged for taking parental leave.
“At a time when doctors are stepping away from practice to care for their families, the continued cost of professional registration can feel both unfair and unnecessary.
“Medical Defense Society was created to offer a more modern, responsive approach to medical defence. Working with DAUK on this initiative allows us to turn a widely recognised concern into practical support for GPs.
“By giving eligible GPs a practical way to get the value of their GMC fee back, we hope to ease some of the financial pressure and send a clear message that parental leave should be supported.”
GPs can find out more about the Medical Defense Society Parental Leave Scheme, including eligibility and how to apply, by clicking here.
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