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102
The following points in connection with the foregoing figures call for
comment:—
2.—Payments from patients. These figures indicate considerable drop
in number of patients paying fees.
3. Decrease in receipts from Insurance Companies, largely due to fact
that Companies have reduced, or in some cases withdrawn, dental
benefits.
4. These figures show that the real income of the Hospital is less under
the new arrangement than under the old.
5. The increase in these account transfers is due to the introduction of
new scale of charges, the fact that more cases have been referred
from Welfare Centres, and to more lenient income scale introduced
last April.
It should be noted that the Maternity and Child Welfare Committee
received the following amounts from patients and voluntary
associations in respect of their dental treatment:—
1.4.30—31.12.30 £95 13 0
1.4.31—31.12.31 56 1 6
8. It will be noted that the cost of the Hospital has increased.
9. The fact that with new scale of charges, which is the same as that used
by Approved Societies, the Hospital would now be self-supporting if
fees were collected gives a broad indication that work is being carried
on in an efficient manner.
Reviewing the situation generally, it appears that effect of raising charges
has been to discourage patients who are not eligible for remission of fees.