§ Mr. RHYS DAVIESasked the Minister of Health (1) in connection with the administration of additional benefit under the provisions of S.R. and O., No. 1,061 (1930), the names of approved societies who have been or are now within these regulations providing additional benefits in cash or treatment to members joining or transferring to such societies where the members have not fulfilled the qualifying conditions for membership contained in Article 11 (a), (b), and (c) of these regulations, and similar information respecting societies providing such benefits from funds donated by the parent bodies of such societies;
(2) the names of approved societies which have been allowed under Article 28 of the appropriate regulations to transfer sums for purposes under headings (a), (b), and (c) of those regulations, and the amounts per member per annum spent by such societies since 1930 for the purposes of Sub-section (1) (b) of Section 75 of the principal Act, and additional benefit No. 5, respectively;
45W(3) the names of approved societies which have been allowed to exceed the maximum of twopence per member under Article 30 of the appropriate regulations for the purposes of Sub-section 1 (b) of Section 75 of the principal Act, or three-pence per member for the purposes of additional benefit No. 5, want or distress?
Sir H. YOUNGSo far as I am aware, no society has provided additional benefits to persons not entitled to such benefits under the Additional Benefit Regulations, though several societies have taken advantage of their powers under Section 75 (1,b) of the National Health Insurance Act, 1924, to make eleemosynary payments to charitable institutions which may in some cases provide treatment similar in character to that obtainable by way of additional benefit. I am not aware of any case in which grants have been made by the parent bodies of approved societies in order to secure treatment for the members of those societies. The power under Article 28 of the Regulations to transfer sums not required for any particular additional benefit to augment the amount available for another additional benefit has been freely exercised by societies, the number of such transactions running into many thousands. 450 societies in England have allocated sums amounting in the aggregate to approximately £14,000 a year towards making payments to charitable institutions in accordance with Section 75 (1, b) and the corresponding figures for additional benefit No. 5 are approximately 800 societies and £36,000 a year. No society has been allowed to exceed the prescribed maximum of 2d. per member per annum for payments under Section 75 (1, b). No maximum is laid down for allocations to additional benefit No. 5.