GP charging for blue badge letter - disabled child

Christ - can you back off the OP

PIP/DLA is not a lot of money, and the people that receive it, and their carers, are more likely to be on a lower income as they cannot work as many hours, or certain jobs for various reasons. Its not unreasonable to expect a GP to write a letter as part of their service.

Back off!

Some empathy wouldn't go astray with some of these posts. It is the fact that GPs are private contractors and the NHS is shockingly disjointed and unfit for purpose that is the issue, not someone trying to do the best for their child. In an ideal world, all services would be joined up and it would be an administrator's job to ensure that everything admin-related to do with care was done, like making follow-up appointments, issuing meeting notes, following up to ensure referrals to other departments are actioned, writing letters to support EHCPs and Blue Badge applications etc. A lot of small things should be automatic. In this ideal world people would actually get the care they need as well, like speech and language therapy, physical therapy and occupational therapy. As the OP has pointed out, DLA often doesn't even touch the sides of what is needed, let alone address the additional financial, physical and emotional issues parents who are also carers face.

If the State wishes to strip disabled people of every last shred of the pitifully small financial support available, then they should put in place the mechanisms to help people get the most out of life which, in turns, means they are able to contribute more.

You get that GP surgeries are private businesses, right? GPs are private operators who are contracted by the NHS to provide NHS services. While they are being paid by the NHS, they cannot do non-NHS work.

The NHS doesn’t contract or pay GPs to provide supporting evidence letters, so you seem to believe that these highly qualified professionals should be using their own time, unpaid, to draft the hundreds of evidence letters they are asked to provide every week. Would you be willing to work for free? If not, why do you expect GPs to?

Yes it is standard for GPs to charge for letters which fall outside of their GP contract. They are a private business so obviously charge for their services. I don't think I ever asked the GP to write a letter of that nature for my DD - I always asked her paediatrician as they generally don't have a mechanism for private charging and were usually willing to write letters of support - although for Blue Badge application I just submitted diagnosis letters and contact details for SN School.

I did once ask the GP for a letter relating to a financial issue for which there was a charge.

No helpful advice but sympathy here @GPlettercharge.

It’s taken months to get a blue badge for an elderly relative who can barely walk from one room to another even with a walking frame now. Apparently a GP letter wasn’t enough and we had to get a letter from an occupational therapist (and pay for it).

I appreciate they don’t want a free for all, but it shouldn’t be this hard! Particularly when most places I go seem to have lots and lots of empty disabled spaces currently unused. I now wonder how many of them could be used by people like my relative who instead has just ended up barely going anywhere.

Yes, it's standard. Your GP is giving a professional opinion. Like all professionals they want to be paid for doing so.

Those are just referrals. Very different to the sort of letter the OP is asking for, collating and setting out evidence.

It’s not “supposed to cover the extra cost” though, is it? It’s supposed to help.

Frankly I think that only the terminally hard of thinking believe that a completely level playing field can be expected or that anything close can be achieved with cash alone. Realistically no amount of money is going to give a severely disabled child the same life outcomes as a non-disabled one and there is not - sadly - that amount of money in State coffers for each child that needs it. To suggest that achieving that outcome is the personal responsibility of the professionals that deal with children in their professional life is nonsense, and offensive nonsense at that

You've had some ridiculous replies here, especially those saying this is what DLA/PIP is for, as if that covers the cost of everything a severely disabled child's needs. It's baffling that some people think you could have money leftover each month from those payments to even put towards a £40 GP letter.

The GP will charge because it's outside the scope of NHS work. That is as simple as it needed to be said. Until you're in this position it's not crazy to be unsure of what constitutes "outside the scope" and it's certainly not as obvious as something like asking them for a fit to fly note etc.

OP, I would "drown them" with paperwork. Send everything. Consultant letters, DLA/PIP letters, ask the school to write something on headed paper, ask the senco to also write something, see if their teacher will, depending on the child's age (can't remember if you stated or not) speak to the local HV team and see if they'll write something about your child's development vs what would be reasonably considered "normal" for the age. Eg, unsafe around roads without supervision etc. If you have any school reports that mention anything about 1-1 supervision or lack of awareness at danger, literally anything. Copies of prescriptions, any GP letters in the same 12 months, just absolutely everything you have. The bulkier it seems you may just be accepted without the need to appeal.

I would also write to your reform candidate (and add a copy of your letter to your blue badge application) and say you hope they're going to reform the current process of needing to take these things to appeal where X% is overturned. Push them to become involved. Just make as loud a noise as possible with it.

It didn't use to be, my GP wrote mine but it was 15 years ago when the GP decided whether you needed one . I think it's a crying shame they charge, it's to do with your health and well being.

Many of us do lots for the community for nothing in return pay-wise: e.g I ran both brownies and beavers, was district commissioner overseeing safeguarding of 3000 children and 76 volunteer staff, for 4 years. Gave up multiple evenings and weekends running camping events etc, looking after both able bodied and the less able, giving parents of SEN child respite. DH also coached the cricket team for 6 years. Not so much as an expense claim for petrol.

Perhaps you could share what YOU do for your community in terms of time away from family for no pay?

@Isobel201 only high rate mobility DLA automatically entitles someone to a blue badge. Just like only certain PIP mobility awards automatically entitle someone to a blue badge.

I am afraid, it is standard. GPs private limited partnerships are businesses, making money - remember 'I have stuffed their mouths with gold'?

Does the DLA mobility not garauntee him a blue badge? I can reapply for my blue badge early next year with my standard PIP mobility or a medical letter from my rheumatology consultant (arthritis).

Not the same but my ds had a leg injury recently. We could access physio through our private medical insurance but they needed a letter from our GP first. Physio then recommended an MRI which again we needed a letter from GP to get privately.
The GP didn't charge for either letter. They said on their website they do charge but seemed to have waived it.

Quite surprised they are chaging you. Good luck with it. X

I'm a GP and have charged for many a letter like this over the years. It sucks, but it's the only way to keep the practice going and pay all the bills / salaries - if work is not funded by the NHS contract we have to either not do it or charge.

I'm really unsure why the OP is getting such a hard time though. She asked a question, listened to the answer and hasn't said anything negative about others, just that having a disabled child is really tough financially, practically, emotionally. Which is true. Sounds like you're doing a really good job advocating for your kid OP, well done

DLA doesn't cover the extra cost of a disability for many disabled children though. It's nowhere near enough in many cases. People clearly don't understand what the extra costs are and how they add up - and how the DLA payment often leaves a huge shortfall.

How many of them on here would do something for nothing that impacts on their family life? I bet none! Maybe the GPs should make it a reciprocal arrangement. Free letters for something in return - give your time to get the GPs time for free. might make them appreciate it more.

Of course there’s discretion: they choose to work for free to assist you. To do this they can either (a) not earn money in the time it takes them to provide the service to you; or (b) they use their free time in which they could see their family, relax etc to help you. Either way the appropriate response, in my view, is to be grateful when they do, not to be horrified if they don’t.

The bottom line is that doing it for free costs the Dr in time or money and you are not entitled to that, however hard things are for you

Because your GP does it free of charge in their own time is their choice. I do not feel aggrieved. Using emotive language to expect freebies isn't a great idea as it what causes GPs to leave because of the workload. Then ppl cry about not being able to see a GP!

I am not the one here crying about a sense of entitlement for freebies.

Maybe you should speak to your MP about this being free for all or maybe offer something in return to enable it to be free? Could work wonders for those to enable it to be free - they do work for you/you do work for them.

I think your problem is the shitty LA rather than already extremely overstretched people wanting to be paid for the work they do.

who else should pay if not you? You’re his parent

Some awful replies here.

I think the issue is not the GP charging but the council that won’t accept other forms of evidence. For us the EHCP and therapist reports were enough to get a blue badge.

I agree, it shouldn’t be this hard. Life with a SEN child is already limited and expensive, everything is far away and needs a car, and if they need private therapy (because it’s another fight to get it on the NHS) it sucks up all the DLA money.

Do go away - clearly there is some discretion permitted because my GP voluntarily chose to waive their charge. Go yell at them if you feel aggrieved that, in the instance I cited, they themselves unilaterally chose to offer their service for free.