§ 29. Mr. Chapmanasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is his latest estimate of the proportion of the population exempt from paying for medical prescriptions and dental treatment.
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§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeIn 1983, the latest year for which figures are available, we estimate that about two fifths of the population of England were eligible for exemption from prescription charges and about one quarter from dental charges. These estimates exclude people who could claim exemption from prescription charges because of a specified medical condition as we do not have figures on the number of people suffering from these conditions at any one time. They also exclude people who are entitled to remission of charges on low income grounds, for example, all supplementary benefit and family income supplement claimants and an unknown number of dependents.
In total, about 60 per cent. of all courses of dental treatment and about 72 per cent. of all prescription items are provided free of charge.