Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to reintroduce an incentive scheme for the Vascular Peripheral Arterial Disease Quality Improvement Framework (1) to improve access to timely treatment, and (2) to prevent lower-limb amputations.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Peripheral arterial disease (PAD), like other cardiovascular conditions, shares risk factors and is largely preventable. However, access to timely diagnosis and treatment can vary significantly across regions. The Government is working to reduce these disparities and improve outcomes for patients.

NHS England introduced the Vascular PAD Quality Improvement Framework, which was incentivised through a two-year scheme, from 2022 to 2024. This framework helps to ensure that patients across the country receive timely and effective interventions, such as revascularisation, by encouraging all providers to meet consistent standards of care. It aims to reduce variation in how quickly and effectively patients are treated, regardless of where they live.

There are no plans to update Vascular PAD Quality Improvement Framework, but it remains an available resource that the National Health Service should have regard to.

The National Vascular Registry (NVR) collects and publishes data on the outcomes of major vascular procedures across NHS hospitals. This includes procedures for PAD, such as angioplasty, bypass surgery, and amputations. By highlighting both good practice and areas needing improvement, the NVR supports hospitals and commissioners in identifying and addressing regional gaps in care quality and outcomes.

There is no specific mandatory requirement for integrated care boards (ICBs) to publish routine data on PAD outcomes. However, ICBs are expected to contribute to data collection and reporting. Additionally, the Quality and Outcomes Framework incentivises general practices to improve care for various conditions, including those related to cardiovascular health, which may indirectly impact PAD management.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they require integrated care boards to publish routine data on outcomes for peripheral arterial disease.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Peripheral arterial disease (PAD), like other cardiovascular conditions, shares risk factors and is largely preventable. However, access to timely diagnosis and treatment can vary significantly across regions. The Government is working to reduce these disparities and improve outcomes for patients.

NHS England introduced the Vascular PAD Quality Improvement Framework, which was incentivised through a two-year scheme, from 2022 to 2024. This framework helps to ensure that patients across the country receive timely and effective interventions, such as revascularisation, by encouraging all providers to meet consistent standards of care. It aims to reduce variation in how quickly and effectively patients are treated, regardless of where they live.

There are no plans to update Vascular PAD Quality Improvement Framework, but it remains an available resource that the National Health Service should have regard to.

The National Vascular Registry (NVR) collects and publishes data on the outcomes of major vascular procedures across NHS hospitals. This includes procedures for PAD, such as angioplasty, bypass surgery, and amputations. By highlighting both good practice and areas needing improvement, the NVR supports hospitals and commissioners in identifying and addressing regional gaps in care quality and outcomes.

There is no specific mandatory requirement for integrated care boards (ICBs) to publish routine data on PAD outcomes. However, ICBs are expected to contribute to data collection and reporting. Additionally, the Quality and Outcomes Framework incentivises general practices to improve care for various conditions, including those related to cardiovascular health, which may indirectly impact PAD management.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to improve diagnosis, care and treatment for patients with peripheral arterial disease.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Peripheral arterial disease (PAD), like other cardiovascular conditions, shares risk factors and is largely preventable. However, access to timely diagnosis and treatment can vary significantly across regions. The Government is working to reduce these disparities and improve outcomes for patients.

NHS England introduced the Vascular PAD Quality Improvement Framework, which was incentivised through a two-year scheme, from 2022 to 2024. This framework helps to ensure that patients across the country receive timely and effective interventions, such as revascularisation, by encouraging all providers to meet consistent standards of care. It aims to reduce variation in how quickly and effectively patients are treated, regardless of where they live.

There are no plans to update Vascular PAD Quality Improvement Framework, but it remains an available resource that the National Health Service should have regard to.

The National Vascular Registry (NVR) collects and publishes data on the outcomes of major vascular procedures across NHS hospitals. This includes procedures for PAD, such as angioplasty, bypass surgery, and amputations. By highlighting both good practice and areas needing improvement, the NVR supports hospitals and commissioners in identifying and addressing regional gaps in care quality and outcomes.

There is no specific mandatory requirement for integrated care boards (ICBs) to publish routine data on PAD outcomes. However, ICBs are expected to contribute to data collection and reporting. Additionally, the Quality and Outcomes Framework incentivises general practices to improve care for various conditions, including those related to cardiovascular health, which may indirectly impact PAD management.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to address inequalities in access to cardiovascular care, and how those actions will be reflected in the development on a new modern service framework for cardiovascular disease.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

This Government is committed to reducing premature mortality from heart disease and stroke and halving the gap in healthy life expectancy between the richest and poorest regions of England. The National Institute for Health and Care Research has launched the ‘Inequalities Challenge’ for cardiovascular disease (CVD), investing £50 million into innovative new research to tackle preventable premature mortality from CVD and reduce inequalities across the United Kingdom.

In addition, the Elective Reform Plan identified cardiology as one of the main priority specialities for significant reform, including increasing specialist cardiology input earlier in patient care pathways, and improving access to cardiac diagnostic tests. These improvements will help standardise patient care, reduce inequalities and improve access to all stages of CVD care for patients across England.

The 10-Year Health Plan will help us to accelerate progress in addressing inequalities in access to CVD prevention and care by prioritising ambitious, evidence-led and clinically informed approaches. In 2026, we will publish a new CVD Modern Service Framework which will support consistent, high quality, equitable care and foster innovation across the CVD pathway.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government when they plan to publish a timeline for the development and implementation of a modern service framework for cardiovascular disease announced in the NHS 10 Year Health Plan for England.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

This Government is committed to reducing premature mortality from heart disease and stroke and the 10 Year-Health Plan sets out our intention to publish a cardiovascular disease Modern Service Framework (CVD MSF). The CVD MSF will be published in 2026, and the Department and NHS England are working closely to tackle one of the country’s biggest killers head on. We will say more on this in due course.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government when they plan to publish the details of a new modern service framework for cardiovascular disease.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

This Government is committed to reducing premature mortality from heart disease and stroke and the 10 Year-Health Plan sets out our intention to publish a cardiovascular disease Modern Service Framework (CVD MSF). The CVD MSF will be published in 2026, and the Department and NHS England are working closely to tackle one of the country’s biggest killers head on. We will say more on this in due course.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of long waits for diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases on patient outcomes; and what steps they are taking to address those waits as part of the new modern service framework for cardiovascular disease.

Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

No current assessment has been made of the impact of long waits for diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) on patient outcomes. However, cardiology is one of five priority specialties identified for significant elective reform in the Elective Reform Plan. Reforms include increasing specialist cardiology input earlier in patient care pathways and improving access to cardiac diagnostic tests. These improvements to common cardiology pathways are helping to standardise patient care, reduce inequalities and improve access to care, especially in early stages of pathways, for patients across England.

To accelerate progress on the Government’s CVD ambition, to reduce premature mortality from heart disease and stroke, we will publish a new CVD Modern Service Framework. The framework will be published in 2026 and will support consistent, high quality and equitable care whist fostering innovation across the CVD pathway.

Found: Watch the meeting Members present: Lord Lansley (The Chair); Baroness Bonham-Carter of Yarnbury; Lord Booth-Smith