PART VIMedical Boards
Amendments of Social Security Act 1975
21(1)The following subsection shall be substituted for section 108(2) of the [1975 c. 14.] Social Security Act 1975—
“(2)Subject to and in accordance with regulations, the disablement questions shall be referred to and determined by an adjudicating medical practitioner or by two or more adjudicating medical practitioners or by a medical appeal tribunal.”.
(2)In subsection (3) of that section, for the words "medical boards " there shall be substituted the words " adjudicating medical practitioners ".
(3)The following subsections shall be substituted for subsection (4) of that section—
“(4)Where the case of a claimant for disablement benefit has been referred by the insurance officer to one or more adjudicating medical practitioners for determination of the disablement questions and, on that or any other subsequent reference, the extent of the disablement is provisionally assessed, the case shall again be referred under this section, to one or more adjudicating medical practitioners as regulations may provide for the purposes of such subsequent references, not later than the end of the period taken into account by the provisional assessment.
(5)In the following provisions of this Act " adjudicating medical practitioner " means, in relation to any case, one such practitioner, unless regulations applicable to cases of that description provide for references to more than one.”.
22In section 109 of that Act—
(a)in subsection (1), for the words " a medical board " there shall be substituted the words " an adjudicating medical practitioner ";
(b)in subsection (2)—
(i)for the words " medical board " there shall be substituted the words " adjudicating medical practitioner "; and
(ii)the proviso shall cease to have effect; and
(c)in subsection (3), for the words " medical board" there shall be substituted the words " adjudicating medical practitioner ".
23In section 110 of that Act—
(a)in subsection (1), for the words " a medical board " there shall be substituted the words " an adjudicating medical practitioner ";
(b)in subsection (2), for the words " a medical board if the board are " there shall be substituted the words " an adjudicating medical practitioner if he is ";
(c)in subsection (6)—
(i)for the words " a medical board " there shall be substituted the words " an adjudicating medical practitioner ";
(ii)for the word " they " there shall be substituted the word " he "; and
(iii)for the word " them " there shall be substituted the word " him "; and
(d)in subsection (7), for the words " a medical board " there shall be substituted the words " an adjudicating medical practitioner ".
24In section 113—
(a)the following paragraph shall be substituted for subsection (2)(a)—
“(a)for the appointment of specially qualified adjudicating medical practitioners and the appointment of medical officers for the purposes of the regulations (which shall be taken to include, in the case of specially qualified adjudicating medical practitioners, the purposes for which adjudicating medical practitioners are appointed and medical appeal tribunals are established) ;”;
(b)in subsection (2)(b), for the words " any such board or" there shall be substituted the words " specially qualified adjudicating medical practitioners or any such ";
(c)in subsection (3)—
(i)for the words from "member", in the first place where it occurs, to " established " there shall be substituted the words " specially qualified adjudicating medical practitioner appointed ";
(ii)for the word " member ", in the second place where it occurs, there shall be substituted the words " practitioner "; and
(iii)for the words " any such board or with the work " there shall be substituted the words " the work under this section of any such medical practitioner or ".
25In section 115(2) of that Act, for the words "a medical board or a single medical practitioner acting in place of a medical board" there shall be substituted the words " or an adjudicating medical practitioner ".
26In section 117 of that Act the words "an adjudicating medical practitioner or a" shall be substituted for the words " a medical board or " in subsections (3) and (4).
27In Schedule 12 to that Act—
(a)the following paragraph shall be substituted for paragraph 1—
“1Adjudicating medical practitioners shall be appointed by the Secretary of State.”; and
(b)the following paragraphs shall be substituted for paragraphs 3 to 6—
“3Subject to the foregoing paragraphs, the appointment of adjudicating medical practitioners and the constitution of medical appeal tribunals shall be determined by regulations.
4The Secretary of State may pay to adjudicating medical practitioners and chairmen and other members of medical appeal tribunals such remuneration and such travelling and other allowances, as he may determine.
5The Secretary of State may pay to persons required to attend on the consideration of a case before an adjudicating medical practitioner or a medical appeal tribunal such travelling and other allowances as he may determine.
6The Secretary of State may pay such other expenses as he may determine, being expenses incurred in connection with the work of adjudicating medical practitioners and medical appeal tribunals.”.
28In Schedule 20 to that Act the following definition shall be inserted at the appropriate point—
“" Adjudicating medical practitioner." | Construe in accordance with section 108(5).”. |
Supplementary
29Any enactment passed before the coming into force of this paragraph and not amended by the foregoing provisions of this Part of this Schedule and any instrument made before the coming into force of this paragraph shall have effect, so far as may be necessary in consequence of the changes made by this Part of this Schedule, as if—
(a)for any reference to a medical board constituted under the [1975 c. 14.] Social Security Act 1975 there were substituted a reference to an adjudicating medical practitioner ; and
(b)for any reference to a special medical board established by virtue of regulations under section 113 of that Act there were substituted a reference to a specially qualified adjudicating medical practitioner.
30Documents and forms printed or duplicated for use in connection with medical boards and special medical boards may be used notwithstanding that they contain references to such boards and those references shall be construed respectively as references to adjudicating medical practitioners and specially qualified adjudicating medical practitioners.