Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his department has made of the potential impact of the requirement for a pre-visit notification on access to eye care for a) people experiencing homelessness and b) care home residents.

National Health Service funded domiciliary, mobile, sight tests are available for patients who are eligible for free NHS sight tests, and who would have difficulties accessing care through the high-street due to physical or mental illness, or disability, or who would have difficulties communicating their health needs unaided. As well as services being provided in residential homes, these services can also be provided in day centres.

In order to ensure people experiencing homelessness can access NHS sight tests on the high street, NHS England issued a clarification via local commissioning teams to ensure that having no fixed abode should not prevent access to NHS care. Integrated care boards can also commission enhanced eye care services, where they feel these are needed to meet local needs.