under a PMS agreement and vice versa and/or a company may, for example hold several GMS contracts. This flexibility has enabled GP practices to come together in varying ways to provide support for each other, expand on the services available and/or resolve premises issues and achieve economies of scale, though each will have their own reasons for coming together. The overarching issues for the Commissioner to consider when any such proposal is made are the benefits to patients and the financial implications of the practice merger. Practice merger models There are many ways in which practices may seek to come together. The most common are listed below but Commissioners should recognise that a proposed practice merger may fall into one or more of the models below or may propose a different approach:
under a PMS agreement and vice versa and/or a company may, for example hold several GMS contracts. This flexibility has enabled GP practices to come together in varying ways to provide support for each other, expand on the services available and/or resolve premises issues and achieve economies of scale, though each will have their own reasons for coming together. The overarching issues for the Commissioner to consider when any such proposal is made are the benefits to patients and the financial implications of the practice merger. Practice merger models There are many ways in which practices may seek to come together. The most common are listed below but Commissioners should recognise that a proposed practice merger may fall into one or more of the models below or may propose a different approach: