§ Mrs. PeacockTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the benefit to permanently disabled adults and children of providing them with an indoor/outdoor powered wheelchair; how many permanently disabled adults and children there are; and what would be the total cost of providing each of them with such a powered wheelchair.
Mr. BowlsDecisions about the issue of wheelchairs, including powered indoor/outdoor wheelchairs, are matters for health authorities and national health service hospital and community care units—trusts—in the light of their resources and priorities.
383WExcluding those on the blind register and those with mental disabilities, the number of people registered as disabled with local authorities at 31 March 1993 was 1,336,925. Of these, 679,057 were classified as being very severely, severely or appreciably handicapped. Not all of these people will require a wheelchair.
In the 12 months to 31 March 1993, the number of wheelchairs, including powered wheelchairs, on issue by the NHS in England was 179,308 and expenditure on the wheelchair service was £39,859,696. There are no figures available centrally about the total cost of providing powered indoor/outdoor wheelchairs to everyone who might benefit from them.
The cost of each such wheelchair will vary considerably according to the user's needs and can range from a standard model costing around £2,500 up to £20,000 for sophisticated wheelchairs for people with very severe disabilities.