§ Ms. RichardsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health which National Health Service hospitals are involved in income generation schemes by offering private breast screening services; and(a) what are the names of the private firms with which they are collaborating, (b) what are the charges to the individual women who use the service and (c) who is responsible for monitoring the medical standards and practices of these schemes.
42W
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeThe information is not available in the form requested. My Department is aware of 11 health authorities offering breast screening services for which a charge is made. Two of these are in collaboration with private firms, Medical Diagnostics Ltd. and Priory Medical. In about half the schemes no charge is made to individual women as the costs are met by employers or charities and some are charged only at cost.
Guidance issued to health authorities in March 1989 specifically asked them to seek advice from my Department where issues of national policy were involved, such as breast and cervical screening. I have now advised health authorities that they should not seek to generate income from such screening.
Health authorities that developed schemes in advance of that guidance may be bound for the time being by contractual arrangements to provide some screening services additional to those available to National Health Service patients.
The health authorities concerned are:
- Royal Marsden Hospital Special Health Authority
- Hull
- Leeds Western
- South Bedfordshire
- Barking, Havering and Brentwood
- City and Hackney
- West Essex
- Canterbury and Thanet
- Maidstone
- Halton
- Wigan