The National Health Service (Travelling Expenses and Remission of Charges) (Scotland) Amendment (No. 2) Regulations 2005

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend the National Health Service (Travelling Expenses and Remission of Charges) (Scotland) (No. 2) Regulations 2003 (“the principal Regulations”).

Regulation 2 makes consequential changes to the interpretation section of the principal Regulations.

Regulation 3 amends the principal Regulations to increase the amounts used as the basis for calculating entitlement to full remission and payment under those Regulations.

Regulation 4 amends the principal Regulations to extend to 5 years the validity of a notice of entitlement to remission of charges and the payment of hospital travel expenses issued to a single person aged 65 or over, or to one of a couple where one partner is aged 60 or over and the other partner is aged 65 or over, where that person does not have certain types of income or a dependant child or young person in their household. Regulation 4 also provides that a person issued with a 5 year notice of entitlement must notify the Scottish Ministers of any changes in the composition of their family or household during the life of the notice and enables the Scottish Ministers to withdraw or vary the notice if the person no longer fulfils the necessary criteria to be issued with that notice.

Regulation 5 amends the principal Regulations to increase the capital limits to be used in calculating entitlement to the payment of travel expenses and remission of charges for people permanently residing in certain types of accommodation.

Regulation 6 makes transitional provision to ensure that only claimants whose applications are received on or after 1st April 2005 will receive 5 year certificates of entitlement.