National Health Service Act 2006

180 Payments in respect of costs of optical appliances

(1) The Secretary of State must provide by regulations for payments to be made by him or a relevant body to meet, or to contribute towards, the cost incurred (whether by way of charge under this Act or otherwise) for the supply of optical appliances for which—

(a) a prescription has been given for a person mentioned in subsection (2) in consequence of a sight test under this Act, or

(b) a prescription has been given for a person mentioned in subsection (2) in consequence of a sight test otherwise than under this Act which took place in prescribed circumstances.

(2) The persons are—

(a) a child,

(b) a person whose resources fall to be treated under the regulations as being less than or equal to his requirements,

(c) any person falling within section 115(2)(d), or

(d) a person of such other description as may be prescribed.

(3) The Secretary of State may by regulations—

(a) provide for himself or such relevant body as may be prescribed to contribute to the cost of a sight test which he or the prescribed body accepts as having been incurred by a person whose resources fall to be treated under the regulations as exceeding his requirements but only by an amount calculated under the regulations, and

(b) provide for payments to be made by him or by such relevant body as may be prescribed to meet, or to contribute towards, any cost accepted by him or by the prescribed body as having been incurred (whether by way of charge under this Act or otherwise) for the replacement or repair in prescribed circumstances of optical appliances for which a prescription was given in consequence of a sight test of a person of a prescribed description.

(4) Regulations under this section may direct how a person’s resources and requirements must be calculated and may, in particular, direct that they must be calculated—

(a) by a method set out in the regulations,

(b) by a method described by reference to a method of calculating or estimating income or capital specified in an enactment other than this section or in an instrument made under an Act of Parliament or by reference to such a method but subject to prescribed modifications,

(c) by reference to an amount applicable for the purposes of a payment under an Act of Parliament or an instrument made under an Act of Parliament, or

(d) by reference to the person’s being or having been entitled to payment under an Act of Parliament or an instrument made under an Act of Parliament.

(5) Descriptions of persons may be prescribed for the purposes of this section by reference to any criterion and, in particular, by reference to any of the following criteria—

(a) their age,

(b) the fact that a prescribed person or a prescribed body accepts them as suffering from a prescribed medical condition,

(c) the fact that a prescribed person or a prescribed body accepts that a prescribed medical condition from which they suffer arose in prescribed circumstances,

(d) their receipt of benefit in money or in kind under any enactment or their entitlement to receive any such benefit,

(e) the receipt of any such benefit by other persons satisfying prescribed conditions or the entitlement of other persons satisfying prescribed conditions to receive such benefits, and

(f) the relationship, as calculated in accordance with the regulations by a prescribed person, between their resources and their requirements.

(6) Regulations under this section which refer to an Act of Parliament or an instrument made under an Act of Parliament may direct that the reference must be construed as a reference to that Act or instrument—

(a) as it has effect at the time when the regulations are made, or

(b) both as it has effect at that time and as amended subsequently.

(7) In subsection (2)(a) “child” means—

(a) a person who is under the age of 16 years, or

(b) a person who is under the age of 19 years and receiving qualifying full-time education.

(8) In subsection (7)(b) “qualifying full-time education” means full-time instruction at a recognised educational establishment or by other means accepted as comparable by the Secretary of State.

(9) For the purposes of subsection (8)—

(a) “recognised educational establishment” means an establishment recognised by the Secretary of State as being, or as comparable to, a school, college or university, and

(b) regulations may prescribe the circumstances in which a person must, or must not, be treated as receiving full-time instruction.

(10) If regulations under this section provide for payments to be made by a relevant body, the Secretary of State must pay to the body, in respect of each financial year, the sum attributable to the body’s disbursements under the regulations.

(11) Sums falling to be paid in pursuance of regulations under this section are payable subject to such conditions as to records, certificates or otherwise as the Secretary of State may determine.

(12) “Relevant body” means a Strategic Health Authority, a Primary Care Trust or a Special Health Authority.