Joint Injections and Minor Surgery – Funding Changes and New Process

Previously, we were able to claim funding for every joint injection and minor surgery procedure carried out at the practice. From 18^th May 2026, the number of joint injections and minor surgery procedures that we can claim for each year is now capped.

For our practice, this means we can claim for a maximum of 161 joint injections and 38 minor surgery procedures per year.

Why does this affect joint injections?

The number of patients needing joint injections is currently much higher than the number of injections we are funded to provide.

For example, between 18 May and 1 September, we carried out 84 joint injections, and we currently have approximately 80 patients waiting for an injection. If we were to provide injections to everyone currently on the waiting list, we would already exceed our annual funded limit, with around nine months still remaining before the limit resets.

We therefore need to carefully manage access to joint injections to ensure that we can provide this service to as many different patients as possible throughout the year.

What is changing?

With immediate effect:

• Patients should not contact the practice to ask to be added directly to the joint injection waiting list. If you have had a joint injection previously and feel that you may need another one, please book a routine GP appointment to discuss your symptoms and treatment options. If an injection is appropriate, the clinician will then add you to the waiting list.
• We will generally aim to leave at least six months between joint injections. This replaces the three- to four-month interval that some patients may have experienced previously.
• Other treatment options will be considered before an injection is recommended. Depending on the problem, this may include pain relief, physiotherapy, exercises, X-rays or referral to another service. An injection will only be recommended where the clinician feels it is clinically appropriate.

We appreciate that these changes may be frustrating, particularly for patients who have previously received injections at regular intervals. However, the funding limit is outside the practice's control, and we need to manage the available appointments fairly and safely across our practice population.

We will continue to monitor demand and the number of procedures carried out throughout the year.