The Primary Ophthalmic Services Amendment, Transitional and Consequential Provisions Regulations 2008

Determination of a PCT made on or after the relevant date (regulation 8)

14.—(1) Where, on or after the relevant date, an appropriate PCT is determining what (if any) action to take pursuant to regulation 8 in accordance with provision made in this Part, it shall make the determination in accordance with the provisions relating to that regulation specified in this regulation.

(2) The appropriate PCT may—

(a) pursuant to regulation 8(1)(c)(i), determine that no further action should be taken;

(b) pursuant to regulation 8(5)(a), determine that an amount shall be recovered from the ophthalmic practitioner; or

(c) pursuant to regulation 8(5)(c), determine that it would have warned the ophthalmic practitioner to comply more closely with the terms of service in future, if those terms of service were still applicable,

and if it makes any one or more of the decisions specified in sub-paragraphs (b) or (c), it shall, after the period specified in regulation 8(11)(a) or (b) (as applicable) has expired, notify in writing the contracting PCT and the Performers List PCT (if any) of its decision and the reasons for it, if either one is a different PCT to the appropriate PCT.

(3) Where, pursuant to paragraph (2)(b), the appropriate PCT determines that an amount should be recovered from the ophthalmic practitioner, that amount shall be recoverable by the appropriate PCT and it shall be treated as a debt owed by that ophthalmic practitioner to the appropriate PCT.

(4) Where the appropriate PCT has notified the contracting PCT that it has made any of the determinations specified in paragraph (2)(b) or (c), or where the appropriate PCT is the contracting PCT, paragraph (5) shall apply without prejudice to any other rights the contracting PCT may have to take action against the relevant contractor pursuant to any term of the general ophthalmic services contract.

(5) Where this paragraph applies, the contracting PCT—

(a) may, in relation to a relevant contractor, take into account the determination of the appropriate PCT if it is considering, pursuant to a term of the general ophthalmic services contract that gives effect to paragraph 46(7) of Schedule 1 to the Contracts Regulations, whether the cumulative effect of breaches under that contract or agreement is such that to allow the contract to continue would be prejudicial to the efficiency of the services provided under that contract; but

(b) in any case where the contracting PCT is considering terminating the general ophthalmic services contract, it shall not take into account any adverse determination that was made more than 6 years before the date of any such proposed termination.

(6) Where—

(a) a Performers List PCT has received notification from an appropriate PCT pursuant to paragraph (2); or

(b) where an appropriate PCT that has taken a decision pursuant to paragraph (2) is also the Performers List PCT,

it shall consider what (if any) action it should take in respect of that ophthalmic practitioner pursuant to its powers under the Performers Lists Regulations.