A MEDICAL centre has been criticised for charging premium rates for incoming telephone calls.

Norton Brook Centre in Cookworthy Road, Kingsbridge, could be costing patients as much as 40p a minute for calls to its current 0844 number.

In September 2009, the Department of Health announced that GPs would be banned from using the high rate 0844 and 0845 numbers and the guidelines came into force on April 1, 2011. However, Norton Brook is one of thousands centres in the country still using such numbers.

A Kingsbridge woman, whose children need regular appointments, said: 'I was charged £2.78 for a short call. It's absolutely outrageous.

'I've been in the phone queue trying to make an appointment and it's not fair to be kept waiting and charged so much.'

Dr Sarah Woollaston, South Hams MP, said: 'I do not feel that anyone should be charged premium rates for phoning their doctor. I will be writing to ask them to clarify the position as these kinds of charges are unacceptable.'

The subject was raised in a House of Commons debate on January 24 this year, and Health Minister Simon Burns said: 'The Government's position is clear – when patients contact their GP or anyone else in the NHS, they should not be charged more than they would be to call their next-door neighbour's landline.

'Questions have been raised about how a patient can challenge their GP practice if they believe they are being charged more than the cost of an equivalent local call – any action taken should be on the basis of robust evidence. Such evidence could include cost-per-call information from providers, such as O2, Vodafone and BT, or cost-per-call information provided by the patient.

'Using that information, it would be possible to compare the cost of calling a GP practice with the cost of calling a local landline number.

'If it is going on, we want to see the evidence and we want to see which GP practices are engaged in it, so that the primary care trusts, which enforce these regulations, can take action. However, if the evidence suggests that using a specific number is not costing patients more than it should, the GP practice should be free to continue using 084 numbers.'

Jane Willis, Norton Brook practice manager, said: 'The lady in question did not come into the surgery to make us aware of her problem and no one else has said anything.

'Our current phone contract finishes in October so we will be changing to a local number then.'