The National Health Service (Charges for Drugs and Appliances) Amendment Regulations 1993

Made: 2nd March 1993

Laid before Parliament: 2nd March 1993

Coming into force: 1st April 1993

The Secretary of State for Health, in exercise of powers conferred on her by sections 77, 83A and 126(4) of the National Health Service Act 1977[^f00001] and of all other powers enabling her in that behalf, hereby makes the following Regulations:—

Citation, commencement and interpretation

1

• (1) These Regulations may be cited as the National Health Service (Charges for Drugs and Appliances) Amendment Regulations 1993 and shall come into force on 1st April 1993.

• (2) In these Regulations, “the principal Regulations” means the National Health Service (Charges for Drugs and Appliances) Regulations 1989[^f00002].

Amendment of the principal Regulations

2

• (1) In regulation 9(2) of the principal Regulations (repayment of charges)—

• (a) in sub-paragraph (b) the words “within such period of the supply of the drug or appliance, and” shall be omitted;

• (b) after sub-paragraph (b) there shall be inserted the following new sub-paragraph (bb)—

(bb) be made within 3 months from the date on which the drug or appliance was supplied to the applicant or within such further period as the Secretary of State may, for good cause, allow;

• (2) For each amount specified in column (3) of the Schedule to these Regulations, where it appears in the provision of the principal Regulations specified in relation to it incolumn (1) (the subject matter of which is indicated in column (2) of that Schedule), there shall be substituted the amount specified in relation to it in column (4) of that Schedule.

Transitional provisions

3

Where, on or after 1st April 1993—

• (a) any appliance specified in Schedule 1 to the principal Regulations is supplied pursuant to an order given before that date; or

• (b) any pre-payment certificate is granted under regulation 8 of the principal Regulations pursuant to an application under that regulation which was received before that date,

the principal Regulations shall have effect in relation to that supply or, as the case may be, that grant as if regulation 2(2) of these Regulations had not come into force.

SCHEDULE — AMOUNTS SUBSTITUTED IN THE PRINCIPAL REGULATIONS

Signed

Signed by authority of the Secretary of State for Health

Brian Mawhinney — Minister of State, — Department of Health — 2nd March 1993

Explanatory note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations further amend the National Health Service (Charges for Drugs and Appliances) Regulations 1989 (“the principal Regulations”) which provide for the making and recovery of charges for drugs and appliances supplied by doctors and chemists providing pharmaceutical services, and by health authorities and NHS trusts to out-patients.

Amendments made to the principal Regulations by regulation 2, and the Schedule, increase the charge for items on prescription or supplied to out-patients from £3.75 to £4.25. The charge for elastic stockings is increased from £3.75 to £4.25 each (from £7.50 to £8.50 per pair) and that for tights from £7.50 to £8.50. The charges for partial human hair wigs and modacrylic wigs are increased from £82.00 to £93.00 and from £32.00 to £36.00 respectively. The charge for full human hair wigs is increased from £119.00 to £135.00. The charge for fabric supports is increased from £21.00 to £24.00 and the charge for surgical brassieres is increased from £16.00 to £18.00. The sums prescribed for the grant of prepayment certificates of exemption from charges are increased from £19.40 to £22.00 for a four month certificate and from £53.50 to £60.60 for a twelve month certificate.

These Regulations also amend the principal Regulations by specifying a time limit of3 months within which applications for repayment of charges are to be made(regulation 2(1)); and make transitional arrangements in respect of pre-payment certificates and appliances ordered before the coming into force of these Regulations.

Footnotes

[^f00001]: 1977 c. 49; see section 128(1), as amended by the National Health Service and Community Care Act 1990 (c. 19) (“the 1990 Act”) section 26(2)(g) and (i), for the definitions of “prescribed” and “regulations”; section 83A was inserted by the Social Security Act 1988 (c. 7), section 14(1) and amended by the 1990 Act, section 66(1) and Schedule 9,paragraph 18(5); section 126 was amended by the 1990 Act, section 65(2).

[^f00002]: S.I. 1989/419; the relevant amending instruments are S.I. 1990/537, 1991/579 and 1992/365.