{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/national-health-service-fund-holding-practices-regulations-1993/note",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/national-health-service-fund-holding-practices-regulations-1993/note.json",
  "legislation": "uksi/1993/567",
  "legislation_title": "The National Health Service (Fund-holding Practices) Regulations 1993",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/national-health-service-fund-holding-practices-regulations-1993",
  "path": "note",
  "kind": "note",
  "number": null,
  "heading": "Explanatory note",
  "text": "(This note is not part of the Regulations)\nThese Regulations consolidate, with amendments, the National Health Service (Fund- holding Practices) (Applications and Recognition) Regulations 1990 (S.I. 1990/1753), the National Health Service (Fund-holding Practices) (General) Regulations 1991 (S.I. 1991/582) and the National Health Service (Fund-holding Practices) (Amendment) Regulations 1992 (S.I. 1992/636).\nThe regulations contain provisions relating to the recognition and operation of fund- holding practices. A fund-holding practice means a practice of one or more medical practitioners who are providing general medical services in accordance with arrangements under section 29 of the National Health Service Act 1977 and which has been recognised as a fund-holding practice by a Regional Health Authority in accordance with section 14 of the National Health Service and Community Care Act 1990. A fund- holding practice is entitled to be paid an allotted sum in accordance with section 15(1) of the 1990 Act and may use that sum for purposes specified in these regulations.\nThe regulations include provision about–\nthe interpretation of the regulations and their application in Wales (Part 1),\nrecognition as a fund-holding practice, including applications for recognition, the conditions for obtaining and continuing recognition, determination of applications and appeals to the Secretary of State against refusal of recognition (Part II),\nrenunciation of recognition including the procedure for renunciation and its consequences (Part III),\nremoval of recognition as a fund-holding practice, including the grounds for removal, the procedure for removal, appeals against removal and the conse quences of removal (Part IV),\nthe purposes for which allotted sums may be applied (Part V),\nthe transfer of some of the functions of Regional Health Authorities in England and similar functions of the Secretary of State in Wales to Family Health Services Authorities (Part VI).\nThe principal differences between these regulations and those they replace are the following:\nregulation 20 contains provision requiring fund-holding practices to use their allotted sums for the purchase of district nursing and health visiting services. The consent of the Regional Health Authority is required to such contracts which have to be with an existing National Health Service provider;\nregulation 22 (payment of salaries) has been amended to make it clear that a fund- holding practice may use its allotted sum to pay the salaries only of those who are employed either to provide treatment to patients of the practice or in connection with the management or administration of the practice. Further, it may not use the allotted sum to pay a doctor for the provision of general medical services;\nregulation 23 contains provision limiting the circumstances in which a fund- holding practice may use its allotted sum to make payments to one of the members of the practice. The written consent of the Regional Health Authority is required to any such arrangement, which may be made only for the provision of those services set out in Schedule 3. These services comprise certain diagnostic and minor surgery services which do not form part of general medical services;\nregulation 24 (savings from the allotted sum) makes clear that in exercising their purchasing decisions, the members of a fund-holding practice may take into account the possible benefit to all their patients of making savings.\nThe regulations contain new provision for the recovery of misapplied sums including the procedure to be followed by the Regional Health Authority and appeal to the Secretary of State (regulation 25).\nThese regulations also make a number of amendments which are minor or consequential drafting amendments or procedural in nature.",
  "extent": null,
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [],
  "outstanding_effects": [],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1993/567/note",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-10-29T14:02:45.400613+00:00"
  },
  "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
}