§ 11. Lieut.-Colonel Sir Thomas Mooreasked the Minister of Health if he has made an estimate of the extent to which the proposed 1s. tax on National Health prescriptions will reduce the demand on doctors or, alternatively, increase the demand on chemists.
§ Mr. BevanNo, Sir. There is evidence of unnecessary resort to doctors and chemists which the proposed charge is intended to reduce, but I am unable to estimate the exact extent to which this is likelv to take place. There is no 504 reason why the proposed charge should increase the demand on chemists.
§ Sir T. MooreIn any case, in view of the widespread opposition to this method of penalising the poor, would not the Minister consider abolishing this discriminating charge altogether?
§ Mr. BevanI think the hon. and gallant Member should await the regulation before he makes wild statements of that sort.
§ Sir T. MooreThey are not wild.
§ 20. Mr. Piratinasked the Minister of Health what is the average cost of prescribing a medicine in hospital; how does this compare with similar medicines provided by a chemist; and whether he can account for the difference.
§ Mr. PiratinWould the Minister propose to find an opportunity of ascertaining this information? If he does so, he will find that the average cost of a prescription in a hospital is 9d., whereas in a shop it is 3s. Could he not find an opportunity for a new regulation to bring the shop price down to the hospital price?
§ Mr. BevanI do not know how the hon. Member arrives at that figure. If he will tell me of his arithmetic on which he bases his figure I shall be extremely interested.