§ Mr. Luceasked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many National Health Service hearing aid users there are; how many people it is estimated should be using hearing aids; how many people would like to but cannot use the National Health Service aid for one reason or another; and how many private hearing aid users there are.
§ Mr. Alfred MorrisIt is estimated that at least 600,000 people use National Health Service hearing aids and over 2 million people in Great Britain suffer from some degre of hearing impairment. I regret that the remaining information sought is not available.
§ Mr. Luceasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the average waiting time for a NHS patient from the first visit to a GP to the final fitting of a hearing aid at the hospital.
§ Mr. Alfred MorrisInformation about average waiting time is not collected in the form requested, but during October 1976, the Latest month for which figures are available, the number of patients in England and Wales fitted with a National Health Service hearing aid was 18,660. The number reported to be waiting for a hospital appointment or fitting of an aid was 54,374.
The latter figure includes some patients who already have a body worn aid and who are waiting to exchange it for the new National Health Service behind-the-ear aid.
§ Mr. Luceasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is his policy with regard to calling in independent hearing dispensers to assist the NHS.
§ Mr. Alfred MorrisSuccessive Governments have maintained that the needs of hearing-impaired adults able to benefit from a National Health Service hearing aid are best provided by a hospital-based service, offering the necessary diagnosis, prescription, dispensing and rehabilitation by medical and technical personnel. It would be difficult to make satisfactory arrangements to utilise the services of private dispensers generally,144W as this would tend to bring about an undesirable separation of diagnosis and prescription from dispensing. Some area health authorities do, however, employ private dispensers for the fitting of private aids prescribed for children by consultants in particular cases.
§ Mr. Luceasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what are the main differences between the United Kingdom and other EEC countries in relation to their policy on hearing aids; if there is an EEC policy on private practice; what is the position of other EEC countries in this respect; and if any EEC countries provide a grant towards a privately-dispensed hearing aid where a NHS one is not suitable.
§ Mr. Alfred MorrisNeither the Commission nor my Department collects detailed information about policy on hearing aids and private practice in member countries, but there is a brief reference to the practice adopted by member countries in "Comparative Tables of the Social Security Systems in the Member States of the European Communities". A copy of the eighth edition of this publication has been placed in the Library of the House.