§ Mrs. BeckettTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on charging women for chemotherapy by Wigan and Leigh Health Service trust. [27098]
§ Mr. SackvilleWigan and Leigh Health Service national health service trust issued a statement on Friday 26 May apologising unreservedly for having made charges and undertaking to reimburse those patients affected. The trust has changed its administrative procedures regarding prescription charges with immediate effect to ensure that these events are not repeated.
§ Mrs. BeckettTo ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what guidelines cover charging patients for chemotherapy treatment as(a) out-patients and (b) in-patients; and if she will ensure that there is a consistent approach to charging for chemotherapy treatment throughout the NHS; [27099]
(2) if she will make a statement on the definition of day care surgery and outpatient treatment; and whether prescription charges can be levied when clinicians administer drugs on hospital premises. [27100]
§ Mr. SackvilleAny medication administered in hospital, whether to in-patients or out-patients, does not attract prescription charges. This is the position under the National Health Service (Charges for Drugs and Appliances) Regulations 1989. Health authorities and trusts were reminded of this in guidelines issued in 1994, HSG(94)12, copies of which are available in the Library. A patient receiving treatment as a day case or as an out-patient—in other words who does not require the use of a hospital bed overnight—is liable for prescription charges for medication taken home.