Primary care is under constant pressure to do more with less. Now, a further challenge is approaching that practices cannot ignore: rising costs for analogue phone lines.
Openreach is increasing Wholesale Line Rental (WLR) prices throughout 2026, ahead of the full switch-off of analogue phone lines in January 2027. For practices still relying on legacy lines, this is no longer a background technical change. It is a cost, access and resilience issue that needs action.
Many practices are already well on the way. What is needed now is not a fresh start, but a final step.
Why analogue phone lines will cost more
Openreach will increase WLR rental prices by 20% in April 2026, followed by two further rises of 40% in July and October, doubling current costs by the end of the year. This is ahead of analogue services being permanently switched off in 2027.
Analogue phone lines are typically used for PDQ machines, alarms, lifts and fax. They often sit outside the core patient access model, yet they still add a monthly cost. As prices rise, these lines quickly become a financial liability.
In many cases, they also introduce risk. Analogue phone lines are fragile, harder to support, and increasingly disconnected from modern access workflows. When they fail, there are fewer options to fix or replace them. This fragility also risks widening access gaps, as patients who rely on timely contact can be disproportionately affected by outages and delays.
For most practices, the safest and cheapest option is clear – remove analogue phone lines altogether where possible. These should be replaced with digital alternatives that are more resilient, future-proof, and give patients more choice in how they contact their practice.
Most practices have already started the digital shift
This is not new ground for general practice.
When national funding supported the move to Cloud telephony, many practices took that step. Initially, it increased flexibility and gave teams better tools to manage demand. It also laid the foundations for a digital-first approach, supporting more equitable patient access.
For some practices, analogue phone lines still supported specific use cases. With the WLR price increase, these cases now matter financially. What once felt small and contained now adds cost with little return.
This moment is not about starting again, it’s about finishing the job.
Related read: NHS England telephony data: How clean data supports access
Helping practices move away from analogue phone lines without disrupting access
Over the last year, we’ve focused on giving practices more value without adding cost. Long before the WLR price increases were confirmed, we invested in features that reduce pressure on phone lines, support workflows and help practices manage demand more efficiently. These changes also help practices offer access in ways that work for different patient needs, irrespective of digital confidence.
These improvements were designed to help practices absorb change, not react to it.
Reducing inbound call pressure
- Patient Callback via Surgery Assist
Lets patients request a callback via the chatbot without waiting in a queue or calling at all, reducing peak-time call volumes and patient frustration. - Website widgets with live queue data in Surgery Assist
Shows callers real-time wait times inside the chatbot, helping patients choose digital routes instead of joining the phone queue. - Website widgets in Surgery Connect
Practices can publish live call queue status on their website so patients can see how busy the surgery is before calling, improving transparency and potentially reducing unnecessary calls. - Enhanced QPOS webpages
Callback webpages can be tailored to the group a patient selected with relevant links and information. This creates a better patient experience and reduces avoidable follow-up calls.
Reducing reliance on analogue workflows
- Expanded Surgery Intellect, powered by TORTUS audio processing
Our ambient scribe enables more call types to be captured and processed digitally, including calls not initially linked to a patient. - Care Navigation Mode in Surgery Intellect, powered by TORTUS
It also allows reception and admin teams to capture structured notes from non-clinical conversations, without relying on paper, fax, or follow-up calls. - Voicemail transcription in Surgery Connect
Voicemails can be automatically transcribed into written text, helping staff quickly identify patients, prioritise urgent requests and reduce time spent replaying messages.
Giving practices better visibility over resources and access
- Communications window call history in Surgery Connect
Brings call history into one clear view so staff can quickly see recent patient contact and act faster. - Enhanced Surgery Insights centralised dashboard
New and improved reports across workforce, telephony, Surgery Assist, NHS App uptake and GP Patient Survey data, helping practices benchmark performance and identify opportunities to reduce avoidable demand. - Power BI reporting (coming soon)
Reporting across products will move into a single Power BI environment with consistent definitions, giving clearer insight into access and performance.
Related read: How GP practice data can unlock operational efficiency
Next steps for removing analogue phone lines
Keeping analogue phone lines is no longer neutral. They increase monthly spend as WLR prices increase, and delay the modern access models that patients increasingly expect.
Practices should now take a practical approach:
- Review what each analogue line supports
- Speak to third-party suppliers about digital alternatives
- Remove lines that are no longer required
In many cases, analogue phone lines support services that have already moved on, or are no longer needed at all.
Supporting practices through the transition
This is an industry-wide change, not a vendor choice. Every practice is affected, and no one needs to solve it alone.
At X-on Health, we’re supporting customers to understand which lines are still needed and where digital alternatives exist, and how to reduce avoidable costs without compromising access. Cutting costs and improving access does not have to be a trade-off. With the right setup and support, they can move together.
Want to understand how this impacts your practice?