GP at Hand: commissioning group asks NHS England for extra £18m to cope with demand

The clinical commissioning group (CCG) hosting the GP at Hand service has asked NHS England to provide an extra £18m (€20.5m; $24.4m) in funding to cope with the surge in patient demand.

The service, launched by the digital health company Babylon Health at a practice in Hammersmith, west London, has attracted almost 20 000 new patients since launching in November 2017. It allows people living outside the CCG’s catchment area to access virtual GP consultations 24 hours a day on their smartphones if they deregister with their existing practice.

The influx of new patients has led to a 10% overall increase …