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WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES BY DEPUTY G.P. SOUTHERN OF ST. HELIER
ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 3rd FEBRUARY 2009
Question
Given that in response to a question asked on 16th September 2008 regarding charges for X-ray and other scans for those on Income Support, the Minister stated that the Health and Social Services Department was "currently undertaking a review of these services", will he advise what progress, if any, has been made in allocating the costs of these services, which used to be free to recipients of HIE, between the 2 departments?
Will he further indicate, what the current charges for such scans are and what proportion of X-ray and other scans are undertaken at the request of GP's and therefore incur a charge?
Answer
In March 2008, in collaboration with the Social Security Department (SSD), Health and Social Services (H&SS) advised its service areas that where services were previously offered free or at a reduced cost to patients who had a current Health Insurance Exemption (HIE) card, that services would continue to do this for anyone with a card. This arrangement still applies to date. If a patient is unable to produce their card, staff at H&SS will contact SSD with patient consent to confirm their previous HIE status.
The most recent full year data shows that in 2007, the Radiology Department performed approximately 16,000 GP examinations on 10,000 GP referred patients. Of those 10,000 GP patients who attended Radiology, approximately 850 claimed HIE status and were therefore not charged. Total income for the remaining GP referred patients who were eligible to pay was £159,394 for the year 2007.
Approximately 90% of patients eligible to pay would have paid the lower amount of £15.70 (X-ray, Ultrasound, Mammography), which has increased to £16.10 for 2008 and the remainder at £21.00 which has increased to £21.50 for 2008 (CT/MRI). The amount for patients who claimed HIE status, and were therefore not charged, represents approximately another £14,000 for 2007.
An estimate for 2008 shows that the proportion of GP referrals overall remains the same as 2007, which was 1 in 5. The total activity for 2008 will be available during February 2009.