Travelling Expenses and Remission of Charges and Optical Charges and Payments and General Ophthalmic Services (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2004

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations.)

These Regulations amend the Travelling Expenses and Remission of Charges Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2004 (“the Travelling Expenses Regulations”), and further amend the Optical Charges and Payments Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1997 (“the Optical Regulations”) and the General Ophthalmic Services Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1986 (“the Ophthalmic Regulations”).

Regulations 2 and 3 increase the income level at which entitlement arises to repayment of travel expenses and a full remission of HS charges, an HS sight test and a voucher towards the cost of an optical appliance and make transitional provision. The income level at which entitlement arises is increased from that which is equal to (or less than) a person’s requirements to that which exceeds requirements by fifty per cent or less of the HS prescription charge. The prescription charge is currently £6·40.