§ Mr. FearnTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how the fees for the provision of dentures and bridges through the hospital and community services, under notice FPN 472, will be calculated; and how they will be funded.
§ Mr. FreemanHospital out-patients and patients treated by the community dental service are required to pay an NHS charge for dentures and bridges supplied as part of their treatment, unless they are in an exempt category. From 1 April 1989 the amount paid by patients is calculated as a fixed proportion, currently 75 per cent., of the fee which a general dental practitioner would receive if the denture or bridge were supplied through the general dental service. Costs of the hospital dental service are met by health authorities and the allocation of resources to them takes account of this service.