GP surgeries deliver NHS care under government contracts, mostly as business partnerships operated by multiple GPs working together.
This differs from other parts of the NHS, which will be protected from the rise under a wider public sector exemption worth around around £5bn a year.
The Liberal Democrats are calling for GPs, as well as companies running care homes and offering care to people in their homes, to be made exempt.
Speaking to reporters, leader Sir Ed Davey also said an exemption should cover pharmacists, adding the hike would “really hit” healthcare providers.
“They’ve exempted the hospitals, for example, they need to exempt the GPs and the pharmacists,” he added.
Mike Padgham, who chairs the Yorkshire-based Independent Care Group, said the NI rise could be the “last straw” for some providers in his area.
“The government has to do something and it has to do it quickly,” he added.
Downing Street said that an extra £600m in grants for local councils, who subsidise social care, would help “address pressures in the sector”.
Source:
www.bbc.com
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