§ Mr. JenkinTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many service personnel are on NHS waiting lists; how many have had to pay for their own treatment; and if he will make a statement. [123572]
§ Mr. Caplin[holding answer 4 May 2003]The Department only maintains records of the numbers of Service personnel awaiting treatment at the NHS hospitals which host the Royal Centre for Defence Medicine (RCDM) and the MOD Hospital Units (MDHUs). Information on the numbers of Service personnel awaiting treatment at other NHS hospitals is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. As at 31 March 2003, the latest date for which figures are available, there were 967 Service personnel awaiting in-patient treatment at the RCDM and MDHUs, plus 1332 awaiting day-case treatment and 3,349 awaiting out-patient appointments.
Service personnel are not required by the Department to pay for their own medical treatment. Information on the numbers who may have chosen to pay for private medical treatment, either themselves or through medical insurance, is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.