§ Mr. Shersbyasked the Secretary of State for Social Service if he will issue instructions requiring general medical practitioners to quote patients' National Health Service numbers on all referral letters to consultants where an opinion is being sought about the desirability of a hearing aid being dispensed, thus enabling hospital 178W administrators and hearing aid technicians to establish the entitlement of patients to the provisions of such aids under the National Health Service.
§ Mr. Geoffrey FinsbergA patient is entitled to an NHS hearing aid only on the prescription of a consultant; and, as consultants can prescribe such aids only to patients they are treating within the NHS, I can see no need to issue special instructions of the kind described.