At the annual conference of LMCs GPs across the UK today, voted for the resignation of the four UK Chief Medical Officers on the grounds of their repeated refusal to remove target payments for GPs giving MMR.

Dr David Love, joint chairman of the BMA's Scottish General Practitioners Committee said:

"GPs are in no doubt about the safety and effectiveness of the MMR triple vaccine. However we are opposed to government's continued refusal to remove target payments for MMR which we see as counterproductive, unjust and which run the risk of jeopardising the doctor patient relationship."

Currently GPs have to reach a target for the number of patients who receive the MMR triple vaccine in order to receive payments for the immunisation. Uptake rates have fallen in recent years which has made it increasingly difficult for GPs to reach the targets, despite spending time with parents helping them to make a choice based on the best information available.

Dr Love added:

"GPs want patients to make an informed choice about whether they would like to have their children immunised with MMR. However there is a danger that patients will think doctors are 'promoting' the triple vaccine in order to make money. Removing the target will remove that doubt.

"We have opposed the target payment system since it was implemented in 1990. In recent years, uptake rates of MMR have been falling and are currently well below levels recommended for 'herd immunity' (95%). In order to maintain the public's confidence in the triple vaccine, GPs have been calling for the removal of the MMR target system. Unfortunately, the Government has clearly not been listening.

Ends


Note to Editors

The Chief Medical Officer for Scotland is Dr Mac Armstrong.

GPs currently have to reach a target of 90% to receive upper level payments for MMR. Figures published by the Scottish Executive earlier this month highlighted a further drop in uptake rates to 86%.

The motion debated today unanimously supported the use of the MMR triple vaccine.