Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has plans to backdate maternity exemption certificates by more than one month from the date of the application.

There are no current plans.

The National Health Service (Charges for Drugs and Appliances) Regulations 2015 states that a maternity exemption certificate (Matex) must be backdated one month before the date on which the application is received by the NHS Business Services Authority (NHS BSA), who are delegated to process applications for Matex certificates on behalf of the Secretary of State. The application process requires that a health care professional such as a midwife or a GP must authorise the application to confirm the patient’s pregnancy and expected due date. The NHS BSA must then issue the Matex on this basis.