§ Mr. LansleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how many(a) MRI scanners and (b) PET scanners there are in England; and how many of these scanners have been bought (i) directly by the NHS and (ii) through alternative funding arrangements. [167712]
§ Miss Melanie JohnsonThere are approximately 221 magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners and four positron emission tomography (PET) scanners installed in the National Health Service in England. In addition, there are approximately 75 MRI scanners and eight PET scanners installed in non-NHS institutions in England.
Of the 221 NHS MRI scanners, it is estimated that just over 100 were purchased directly by the NHS. Approximately 60 were purchased through central capital programmes funded by the New Opportunities Fund (NOF) and the Department. Approximately 60 191W were purchased through other arrangements, including lease arrangements, managed service contracts and charitable funding.
This information is not held centrally for PET scanners.
By the end of 2004, central cancer capital funding will mean that there will be approximately 277 MRI scanners in the NHS in England. In addition, on 8 April 2004, the Department launched a procurement from the private sector to provide an extra 80,000 mobile MRI scans per year for the NHS for five years.