§ Mr. Alfred MorrisTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if the Department's estimate of the cost of providing indoor and outdoor powered wheelchairs remains as set out in the letter date-stamped 23 March, ref. POH(4) 4295/111 from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, the hon. Member for Battersea (Mr. Bowis), to the hon. Member for Hastings and Rye (Mrs. Lait); when and by whom the estimate was made; and if she will make a statement.
§ Mr. BowisCalculation of the likely cost of supplying powered indoor/outdoor chairs to all those who qualify and require one is complex. The defining factors are assumed need, purchase cost through bulk purchasing, the 1085W cost of maintenance and repair and the effect on costs of refurbishment and re-issue of chairs.
The estimate referred to was based on a simple extrapolation derived from a broad estimate of need contained in the 1986 McColl report.
On 1 July I announced a review of wheelchair services in the context of the feasibility and affordability of a voucher scheme. As part of this review we have commissioned firm and practically based costings including for supply of indoor/outdoor powered chairs. We will be announcing our conclusions on this exercise in due course.