GP charging for blue badge letter - disabled child

[GPlettercharge]

Just checking if this is usual practice to be charged for a GP to write a supporting letter for a blue badge application for a disabled child?

My child is 5, has profound learning difficulties and ASD. Is non verbal and attends specialist school. Displays many challenging behaviours and has no sense of danger. Regularly refuses to walk and can also try to run into the road etc.

Our local authority are notoriously difficult in giving out blue badges and I was advised by his specialist school to get a supporting letter from the GP to apply for a blue badge as they’ve seen first hand how dangerous he is in a car park.

Our GP had an appt with him and has agreed to write the letter. However they have charged £40 for this.

Is this standard? It seems excessive, it’s not as though we’ve asked for a letter to support us going on holiday or something. This is for a disabled child!

I suppose I will pay it if necessary but wanted to check if this was the norm.

Thanks

Some really unpleasant replies on here, completely unnecessary. Seems to be a common theme across mumsnet. I bet it would be different in real life. I’m sorry you’re struggling OP, it sounds tough.

Thank you yes we have all this.

We’ve been advised by others and his specialist school that this often isn’t enough for the purposes of getting a blue badge and we were suggested to get another supporting letter from the GP.

So I did. I was just surprised that the NHS charges disabled children to get a letter confirming their disabilities and extra needs is all.

But they do, so I will pay it. I can’t face another battle to get something he needs.

I think you’re missing the point. You and your child have been incredibly unlucky because he has a significant disability. Because you live in a civilised society (yes, really!) the State helps to cover some of the costs arising from your bad luck. It also provides some free services but those services are provided on the basis of their (in this case the NHS’s) criteria. You - and indeed I - might not agree that your son does not need OT/SALT but the NHS gets to decide where its resources are used and has apparently said that your son has received enough. We don’t know the reason why and I’m not going to speculate.

If you want more you have to pay for it. If that is the priority then maybe you can’t also afford the GP letter that will improve your chances of getting a blue badge. If it’s any consolation almost all parents are making the same assessment - do I spend money on (a) or (b) because I don’t have it for both. That is simply parenting, and not exclusive to parenting a disabled child. Your circumstances are starker and the State does try to help with/compensate for that.

But in stark terms, no one else, including your Dr, is obliged to do so. I think it is testament to how generous professionals generally are with their time that you seem to feel they are obliged to give you freebies and it’s shocking that they won’t. I’m also quite sure that if they could find the time they still would.

Glad you have appealed to SENDIST. Sadly, many have to appeal. The majority are successful.

In case it is relevant in the future, you could have appeal B&F when the EHCP was finalised naming the SS. That wouldn’t have prevented DS starting the SS when he did.

OP, the NHS contract doesn’t cover work like this, tbh even the appointment you had to ask for it wasn’t covered under the remit of the NHS. This would just be an admin request, lots of people use appointments to ask for insurance forms and things, this is why a lot of GP’s now ask why you are booking an appt so the appts on the NHS are used for medical issues not admin. It’s related to his medical conditions but it’s an admin function.

They aren’t allowed to fill in forms in NHS time, therefore they do it in their own time which is why there is a fee, as otherwise they are working through their lunches or later in the evening for free. Just because they are a doctor doesn’t mean they are expected to work for free. GP’s aren’t ’the NHS’ they get paid for a contracted service for the NHS, they are a small business.

And a lot of people who ask for forms are low income, so much of it now like blue badge is free to access via the council, or you can submit letters you already have. This saves NHS time and also money for patients

The NHS doesn’t charge. The NHS contracts GPs to deliver certain services, the point is that the NHS doesn’t include writing letters for applications in that contract they make with GPs. So a GP can charge the recipient or they can go unpaid for doing that work.

The admin is overwhelming. And of course it means that rather than them saying yes and emailing you a pdf, you have to wait until they say it is ready, call them to make a payment (may take several efforts) and then wait for them to release it. It slows the process down and adds an additional layer of stress and bureaucracy to what is already an admin nightmare.

I expect to pay for services when I need them. My needs are nothing to do with you but it really does show your lack of empathy in your presumptions about others.

You also lack empathy for people making a living and expect things for free.

So they should work for nothing because a patient is vulnerable? They would go bankrupt if they did.

Sorry we as a society expect freebies and unpaid labour from a whole host of professions by using emotive language such as 'vulnerable' etc.

They are showing empathy by providing a service to vulnerable patients.

It is a way of expecting things for free by using such language. They are a business. You pay for their service.

Oh do go away. You’ve made your point.

I don’t expect things for free believe me. I expected this sort of service to be covered under the NHS given that it pertains to a disability and medical needs.

Ive said numerous times that I understand that in this case it isn’t and I WILL PAY. So go away.

Yep this in a nutshell. Imagine how many forms they have to fill in. It will not just be 1 or 2. It'll be countless forms each day.

Writing letters such as these is outside the NHS contract, hence gps charge for it.

Totally understand your frustration.
However- GP practices do not get paid to do this.
Its technically classed as private work.
Gp time, secretary time and associated costs have to be covered.

If you expect it under the NHS you do expect it for free 🤦🏼‍♀️ The NHS prioritises its expenditure and has decided this isn’t a priority (and I can see why). So you pay for it (possibly using some of the State funded money that you receive because of the difficulty of your circumstances) or you don’t have it. I’m still lost on why that’s shocking

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.

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.

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

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

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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

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