Health and Work Service introduced to help employees get back to work
Employers are no longer able to claim reimbursement for statutory sick pay (SSP) under the Percentage Threshold Scheme (PTS), as of April 6, 2014.
As a result, employers now have until the end of the 2015-16 tax year to recover SSP paid before the end of the 2013-14 tax year.
Employers are still required to maintain SSP records for pay as you earn purposes, as well as producing SSP records to meet legal SSP obligations, should they be required by HMRC.
Money from PTS will be reinvested into the new Health and Work Service (HWS), which aims to help employees get back to work after they have been incapacitated for more than four weeks.
The Government believes HWS could reduce sickness absence costs, saving employers between £70m and £160m a year.
Under the new scheme, web and phone-based health and work advice will be available to employers, employees and GPs.
After four weeks of sickness absence, employees can be referred by a GP for assessment by an occupational health professional. Employers can also refer staff after four weeks if they have not been referred by a GP.
Visit the Government website for more information about the Health and Work Service.
Veterinary practices are being urged to help owners safely dispose of any unused and expired pet medicines - not just antibiotics - during November's Animal Medicines Amnesty. 
