These Regulations amend the National Health Service (Charges for Drugs and Appliances) (Scotland) Regulations 2001 (“the principal Regulations”) which provide for the making and recovery of charges for drugs and appliances supplied by doctors and pharmacists providing pharmaceutical services, and by Health Boards and NHS trusts to out-patients.

The charge, in regulation 3(1)(b) of the principal Regulations, (supply of drugs and appliances by chemists) is increased from £6.30 to £6.40 (regulation 2(2)).

The charge, in regulation 8(5) of the principal Regulations, (pre-payment certificates) is increased from £32.90 to £33.40 for a 4 month certificate and from £90.40 to £91.80 for a 12 month certificate (regulation 2(3)).

Schedules 1, 2 and 3 to the principal Regulations are substituted in order to increase the various charges set out in those schedules (regulation 2(4)). The charge for elastic stockings is increased from £6.30 to £6.40 each (from £12.60 to £12.80 per pair) and that for tights from £12.60 to £12.80. The charge for surgical brassieres is increased from £21.20 to £21.50 and for fabric supports is increased from £32.00 to £32.50. The charges for modacrylic wigs and partial human hair wigs are increased from £52.30 to £53.10 and from £138.00 to £140.15 respectively. The charge for full human hair wigs is increased from £201.70 to £204.90.

Regulation 3 provides that the increase in charges made by regulation 2(2) to (4) shall be in respect of supplies made on or after 1st April 2004 or where examinations leading to the supply of an appliance take place on or after that date and, in respect of payments of sums for pre-payment certificates, where the pre-payment certificate itself was applied for on or after 1st April 2004.