One of Liverpool's most senior doctors has said it's impossible to rule out further threats of closure at GP surgeries across the city.
Thousands of patients were affected when a provider that ran six surgeries in the city announced it would have to hand back its contracts early, throwing their future into doubt.
Primary Care Connect – a not-for-profit company set up by Liverpool GPs - held the contracts to run the surgeries until March 2020, but brought them to an early end in January 2019 because of problems recruiting permanent doctors.
Four of the practices were eventually saved after another provider stepped in.
But speaking at the council's health and social care select committee, NHS Liverpool chair Fiona Lemmens said the situation facing some GPs in Liverpool was so challenging that she couldn't rule out the surgeries facing the same situation again.
She said: "I think it is very difficult for us to give any assurances that it won't happen again.
"I do think having a provider that has other establishments in the city does provide it with more support."
Ms Lemmens also said that finding staff for some GPs in Liverpool was proving so challenging that it was also unlikely that someone would look to open new surgeries in the city.
And Liverpool CCG chief executive Jan Leadward repeated her warnings from a previous meeting that the combination of short term contracts and the locations of some of the surgeries meant it had proved highly difficult for them to find staff.
The four GP surgeries that were saved from closure were in Garston, Netherton, West Speke and Park View.
The contracts to run those surgeries runs until March 2022.
Primary Care Connect's surgeries in Anfield and Everton Road closed earlier this year.
