PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Norman Beale AU - Gordon Taylor AU - Mark Gwynne AU - Carole Peart TI - Council tax valuation bands and contacts with a GP out-of-hours service DP - 2006 Apr 01 TA - British Journal of General Practice PG - 283--285 VI - 56 IP - 525 4099 - http://bjgp.org/content/56/525/283.short 4100 - http://bjgp.org/content/56/525/283.full SO - Br J Gen Pract2006 Apr 01; 56 AB - UK GPs are no longer responsible for the organisation of out-of-hours care for their patients, but resources remains capitation-based. This cross-sectional study tests whether council tax valuation bands can predict the demand for such services. All out-of-hours contacts made by patients in North Wiltshire over 4 months were classified by council tax band; frequencies compared with official population statistics. Council tax band predicts out-of-hours GP workload irrespective of age and sex: the more modest the home, the higher the GP contact rate. It may prove more difficult to sustain out-of-hours services in deprived parts of the UK.