NHS doctor charged patients for visits

THE GP suspended by the General Medical Council (GMC) over charging a seriously-ill man for home visits has resigned from his Harpenden practice.

Dr John Stephens, who was senior partner at the Village Surgery in Amenbury Lane, left the practice after his suspension at the end of last month.

The practice is now looking for a new partner.

A GP for 35 years, Dr Stephens was censured by the GMC for bringing the medical profession into disrepute after it emerged that he had made a number of home visits to the patient and his wife over a period of nearly two years for which he charged payments totalling more than �1,000.

The GMC panel heard that when Dr Stephens was asked by the couple how much they owed him for home visits, he did not tell them they did not have to pay.