From today, every GP practice in England will have to offer online appointment bookings throughout the day.
The move, ordered by the government, is aimed at reducing the so-called '8am scramble' to get through to practices on the phone.
Surgeries will have to provide the service from 08:00 to 18:30 Monday to Friday.
Alongside requesting non-urgent appointments, patients will also be able to ask questions and describe symptoms and request a call back.
It comes after the British Medical Association (BMA) called for a halt to the introduction, warning that potentially serious health problems could be missed by some GPs and lead to patients being harmed.
The doctors union said there would be a "potential online triage tsunami" and urged more to be done to provide safeguards, such as allowing practices to temporarily switch off the online booking mechanism if staff are struggling to handle patient numbers.
It said on Monday it would consider industrial action in the form of a work-to-rule if need be.
Source: BBC News, 1 October 2025
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