Health Services and Public Health Act 1968

1 Accommodation and treatment, at hospitals providing hospital and specialist services, of persons as private resident patients

(1) If the Minister is satisfied, in the case of a hospital providing hospital and specialist services, that it is reasonable so to do he may, subject to the provisions of this section, authorise accommodation and services at the hospital to be made, to such extent as he may determine, available for resident patients who undertake, or in respect of whom an undertaking is given, to pay such charges as the Minister may in accordance with the following provisions of this section determine, and the Minister may recover those charges.

(2) The Minister may allow accommodation and services to which an authorisation under the foregoing subsection relates to be made available in connection with the treatment, in pursuance of arrangements made by a medical practitioner or dental practitioner serving, whether in an honorary or paid capacity, on the staff of a hospital providing hospital and specialist services, of private patients of that practitioner as resident patients.

(3) The Minister, for the purpose of determining charges to be paid under subsection (1) above, may classify the hospitals providing hospital and specialist services and may, in the case of each class, determine, in respect of each period of twelve months beginning with 1st April first falling after the date on which the determination is made, the charges to be paid under subsection (1) above in respect of accommodation and services provided during that period at a hospital falling within that class; and in determining such charges in respect of a period the Minister shall have regard, so far as reasonably practicable, to the total cost (exclusive of costs appearing to him to be properly attributable to capital account) which, by reference to facts known to him at the time of the determination, it is estimated will be incurred during that period in the provision for resident patients of hospital and specialist services at hospitals falling within that class, and may include in any such charges, in such cases as appear to him fit, such amounts as appear to him proper and reasonable to be included by way of contribution to expenditure appearing to him to be properly attributable to capital account.

(4) The Minister may under the foregoing subsection determine different charges for different accommodation and for different services and in relation to different circumstances.

(5) The Minister may allow such deduction from the amount of a charge due by virtue of an undertaking given under this section by, or in respect of, a patient as he thinks proper—

(a) in respect of treatment given to the patient under subsection (2) above; and

(b) in respect of any period during which the accommodation to which the undertaking relates is temporarily vacated by the patient

(6) Nothing in this section shall prevent accommodation from being made available for a patient other than one mentioned in subsection (1) above if the use thereof is needed more urgently for him on medical grounds than for a patient so mentioned and no other suitable accommodation is available.

(7) This and the next following section shall have effect in Scotland in place of section 5 of the 1947 Act.