Doctors call for funding reform to tackle health disparities across England

Open letter by Royal College of GPs says system fails to equitably distribute money and contributes to wider health inequalities

Ministers must “radically” reform the way GP funding is allocated across the country because it results in the poorest areas receiving inadequate healthcare, family doctors have warned.

The Royal College of GPs (RCGP) wrote in an open letter that the Carr-Hill formula, which has been used to allocated core GP funding since 2004, is outdated as it does not equitably distribute funds and as a result has contributed to the widening of health inequalities across the country.