NHS Low Income Scheme
(asked on 7th October 2016) - View Source
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2016 to Question 44396, for what reason there has been a decrease in the number of HC3 certificates issued between 2008 and 2016.
The direct costs of administering the NHS Low Income Scheme in England in the last three financial years are set out in the table. The figures do not include overheads associated with the wider infrastructure of the NHS Business Services Authority.
Year | Direct costs (England only) (£ million) |
2015/16 | £1,327 |
2014/15 | £1,397 |
2013/14 | £1,414 |
Source: provided by the NHS Business Services Authority
There is no apparent reason for the decrease in the numbers of HC3 certificates issued between 2008 and 2016. There has been no significant change to the scheme criteria nor the rules for calculation during this period. However, as the application numbers have decreased, there has been a corresponding decrease in the certificates issued.