The Health and Medicines (Northern Ireland) Order 1988

General ophthalmic services and optical appliances N.I.

8.—(1) In Article 62(1) of the principal Order for the words from “of sight by them” to the end there shall be substituted the words “by them of the sight—

(a) of a child;

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

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

(2) At the end of Article 62 of the principal Order there shall be added the following paragraphs—

“(4) In this Article—

“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; and

“qualifying full‐time education” means full‐time instruction—

(a) at an educational establishment recognised by the Department as being, or as comparable to, a school, college or university; or

(b) by other means accepted as comparable by the Department,

and for the purposes of this definition regulations may prescribe the circumstances in which a person is or is not to be treated as receiving full‐time instruction.

(5) Regulations under this Article may direct how a person's resources and requirements are to be calculated and, without prejudice to the generality of this paragraph, may direct that they shall 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 a transferred provision other than this Article 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 a transferred provision; or

(d) by reference to the person's being or having been entitled to payment under a transferred provision.

(6) Descriptions of persons may be prescribed for the purposes of paragraph (1) by reference to any criterion and, without prejudice to the generality of this paragraph, 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 transferred provision or their entitlement to receive any such benefit; and

(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.

(7) Regulations which refer to a transferred provision may direct that the reference is to be construed as a reference to that provision—

(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.

(8) Regulations may provide that a person—

(a) whose sight is tested by a person who provides general ophthalmic services; and

(b) who is shown during the testing or within a prescribed time after it to fall within paragraph (1),

shall be taken for the purposes of the testing to have so fallen immediately before his sight was tested; and the testing shall be treated—

(i) for the purposes of any arrangements under this Article;

(ii) for the purposes of remuneration in respect of the testing; and

(iii) for any such other purpose as may be prescribed,

as a testing of sight under this Order.

(9) Regulations shall define the services for the provision of which arrangements under this Article are to be made and the services so defined are in this Order referred to as “general ophthalmic services” .” .

(3) In Article 2(2) of the principal Order in the definition of “general ophthalmic services” for the words “Article 62(1)” there shall be substituted the words “ Article 62(9) ” .

(4) In paragraph 2A(1) of Schedule 15 to the principal Order after head ( c ) (but not as part of it) there shall be added the words “or for which a prescription has been given for a person such as is mentioned in head (a ), (b ) or (c ) in consequence of a testing of sight (not being a testing of sight under this Order) which took place in prescribed circumstances” .

(5) In paragraph 2A of Schedule 15 to the principal Order for sub‐paragraph (4) there shall be substituted the following sub‐paragraphs—

“(4) The Department may by regulations—

(a) provide for the Department or a Health and Social Services Board or the Agency to contribute to the cost of a testing of sight which the Department, the Board or the Agency 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;

(b) provide for payments to be made by the Department or a Health and Social Services Board or the Agency to meet, or to contribute towards, any costs accepted by the Department, the Board or the Agency as having been incurred (whether by way of charge under this Order or otherwise) for the replacement or repair in prescribed circumstances of optical appliances for which a prescription was given in consequence of a testing of sight of a person of a prescribed description; and

(c) direct how a person's resources and requirements are to be calculated and, without prejudice to the generality of this head, give any such direction as to how they are to be calculated as may be given by regulations under paragraph 1B(2).

(4A) Descriptions of person may be prescribed under this paragraph by reference to any criterion and, without prejudice to the generality of this sub‐paragraph, by reference to any of the criteria specified in paragraph 1B(1).

(4B) Sub‐paragraph (3) of paragraph 1B shall have effect in relation to regulations under this paragraph as it has effect in relation to regulations under that paragraph.” .