In its response to the White Paper, 'Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS', the MDU urged the government to ensure GP contracts specify how clinical negligence claims are indemnified.
Dr James Armstrong, head of underwriting at the MDU, said indemnity should be provided either by the NHS, or through an insurance policy from a regulated insurance company.
He said: ‘GPs will want to ensure that any patients who are negligently harmed when treated or cared for by them will be compensated. Patients and their representative organisations will be playing a greater part in overseeing the setting up of such arrangements.
'Like GPs, they will also want to be certain there are contracts in place so they will receive appropriate compensation if they are negligently damaged. Such assurances can only be certain if the indemnity is provided either by the NHS, or through an insurance policy from a regulated insurance company.’
