01 December 2023

NHS England - PCSE online business - continuity plan

In advance of the government's plans to move to paperless claims and payments for GOS, NHS England, after discussion with OFNC, has published an updated business continuity plan to be used as a failsafe in instances when there is a PCSE system outage, poor mobile connectivity, or where there are internet connectivity issues.

The plan outlines the steps that practices should take to ensure there is no delay in patient care if they cannot access the PCSE claims system to process claims.

As part of this package, OFNC welcomes the publication of a standard form that can be used to capture patient signatures if PCSE is unavailable. This will bring significant benefits for domiciliary providers, who have found that mobile signal limitations have been a major and longstanding obstacle to delivering care. OFNC has been pressing NHS England for action on this issue since it was first raised by domiciliary providers.

OFNC will continue to monitor these arrangements and provide feedback to NHS England as the paper switch off progresses. Practitioners should contact their OFNC member body if they experience any issues.

ENDS


Note for Editors
The Optometric Fees Negotiating Committee (OFNC) is the national negotiating body for eye care in England with the Westminster Parliament, the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England. It comprises the leaders of the UK representative bodies: ABDO, AOP, FODO and BMA (for OMPs) and works in partnerships with the College of Optometrists and the General Optical Council.