§ Mr. McInnesasked the Secretary of State for Scotland the total number of persons not permanently resident in Great Britain who obtained medical and surgical treatment in Scotland under the National Health Service for the latest full year recorded; the estimated cost to the Exchequer; and which countries they normally reside in; and the numbers for each country.
§ Mr. J. StuartNo precise information is available, for National Health Service patients are not required to provide evidence of their permanent residence. Apart from the provision of drugs, treatment of non-residents by general practitioners involves no extra Exchequer cost because the aggregate remuneration66W of general practitioners does not depend on the total number of patients. Special inquiries at particular hospitals in 1950 suggested that not more than one-tenth of 1 per cent. of hospital expenditure related to persons from abroad. It can, I think, be assumed that the total cost to the Exchequer of treating nonresidents under the National Health Service does not exceed£50,000 a year in Scotland.