Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the (a) drug prices, (b) appliance prices and (c) fees paid to pharmacy contractors in the NHS Drug Tariff.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department undertakes a quarterly assessment of the adequacy of drug prices paid to community pharmacies through the medicine margin survey. The survey samples independent pharmacy contractors’ sales invoices for the medicines they dispense, and compares the amount paid with the amount reimbursed by the National Health Service. This has found that more than the amount agreed as part of the Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework has been delivered in total across the previous four financial years. Suppliers of appliances can optionally apply for an annual price increase on the NHS Drug Tariff. Fees in the tariff are routinely reviewed and updated when appropriate.
Medicine costs are considered as part of ongoing broader assessments of the financial health of the sector. However, if the selling price of a product goes above the reimbursement price in a given month, pharmacy contractors can request an increase to the reimbursement price from the Department via Community Pharmacy England. Where an increase is granted, this new price is known as a concessionary price. This ensures that that the reimbursement prices set are reflective of real time market selling prices, and means that pharmacy contractors are paid fairly for the medicines they dispense.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help community pharmacies with increases in the cost of medications.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department undertakes a quarterly assessment of the adequacy of drug prices paid to community pharmacies through the medicine margin survey. The survey samples independent pharmacy contractors’ sales invoices for the medicines they dispense, and compares the amount paid with the amount reimbursed by the National Health Service. This has found that more than the amount agreed as part of the Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework has been delivered in total across the previous four financial years. Suppliers of appliances can optionally apply for an annual price increase on the NHS Drug Tariff. Fees in the tariff are routinely reviewed and updated when appropriate.
Medicine costs are considered as part of ongoing broader assessments of the financial health of the sector. However, if the selling price of a product goes above the reimbursement price in a given month, pharmacy contractors can request an increase to the reimbursement price from the Department via Community Pharmacy England. Where an increase is granted, this new price is known as a concessionary price. This ensures that that the reimbursement prices set are reflective of real time market selling prices, and means that pharmacy contractors are paid fairly for the medicines they dispense.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of medication costs on community pharmacies.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department undertakes a quarterly assessment of the adequacy of drug prices paid to community pharmacies through the medicine margin survey. The survey samples independent pharmacy contractors’ sales invoices for the medicines they dispense, and compares the amount paid with the amount reimbursed by the National Health Service. This has found that more than the amount agreed as part of the Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework has been delivered in total across the previous four financial years. Suppliers of appliances can optionally apply for an annual price increase on the NHS Drug Tariff. Fees in the tariff are routinely reviewed and updated when appropriate.
Medicine costs are considered as part of ongoing broader assessments of the financial health of the sector. However, if the selling price of a product goes above the reimbursement price in a given month, pharmacy contractors can request an increase to the reimbursement price from the Department via Community Pharmacy England. Where an increase is granted, this new price is known as a concessionary price. This ensures that that the reimbursement prices set are reflective of real time market selling prices, and means that pharmacy contractors are paid fairly for the medicines they dispense.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment she has made of the reliability of diagnostic testing of blood samples for vCJD.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
Clinical diagnostic testing for variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD) is provided by the National Health Service, but there is currently no licensed blood screening test for vCJD, although there is ongoing research in this field. The National CJD Research and Surveillance Unit is involved in developing specialist investigations for vCJD, in collaboration with colleagues in Europe and internationally, with further information available at the following link:
https://www.cjd.ed.ac.uk/surveillance/diagnosis-and-testing
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions she has had with pharmaceutical companies on making the Covid vaccine commercially available.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
The Government is committed to protecting those most at risk from COVID-19 through vaccination, as guided by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). Those eligible receive vaccination for free through the National Health Service. Whether and when a private market for COVID-19 vaccines emerges is a matter for private companies, and the Government has no formal role in this. However, the Government is supportive of the emergence of a private market for COVID-19 vaccines to increase choice for consumers. I have engaged with relevant interested parties who may seek to enter the private market this year, including vaccine manufacturers and pharmacies.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 14 November 2023 to Question 395 on Coronavirus: Vaccination, what steps she is taking to implement the advice of the JCVI on the rollout of the autumn 2023 booster programme to people who are immunocompromised.
Answered by Maria Caulfield
As recommended by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), the autumn 2023 COVID-19 vaccination programme includes all those aged between six months and 64 years old in a clinical risk group, as defined in tables 3 and 4 of the COVID-19 chapter of the Green Book. This includes those with immunosuppression.
We continue to work with NHS England and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) to improve immunosuppressed uptake nationally, by understanding drivers of hesitancy, improving the quality of our published data, ensuring it is easy and convenient book and access vaccinations, and by continuing a variety of campaign activities throughout the winter including UKHSA’s ‘get winter strong’ campaign. This was launched on 1 November 2023 and encourages those eligible, specifically the clinically most vulnerable, who have not yet come forward for the flu and COVID-19 vaccines to do so.
NHS England has produced and shared a range of targeted communications materials encouraging people who are immunosuppressed to take up their offer of a COVID-19 booster vaccine, including posters, display screen visuals and social media cards. There are also materials to raise awareness that those who are a household contact of an immunosuppressed person are also eligible for vaccination. These materials have been translated into 28 languages to reach people from a wide range of communities through their native languages and have helped general practices, vaccination centres, pharmacies, and other sites to promote COVID-19 and flu vaccination this autumn/winter.
The Government’s Chief Medical Officer, Professor Sir Chris Whitty, also wrote to the main charities representing the clinically most vulnerable patient cohorts, to publicise this autumn’s campaign, and to enable them to signpost the offer to their patient communities.
The autumn campaign remains open and all those who are eligible but who have not yet come forward are encouraged to take up their vaccination.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry’s publication entitled At the crossroads: how a new UK medicines deal can deliver for patients, the NHS and the economy, published on 1 March 2023, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of that publication's proposals to lower the tax rebate for the voluntary scheme for branded medicines pricing and access.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson
The Department carefully considers all evidence in the public domain on matters relating to the pricing of medicines in the United Kingdom, including the March report by the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI).
The Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicines Pricing, Access and Growth (VPAG) has been agreed in principle with ABPI and is set to save the National Health Service £14 billion over 5 years in medicines costs. VPAG introduces a new mechanism to ensure sustainable spending on older medicines where competition hasn’t yet driven down prices, and is an explicitly pro-innovation and pro-competition agreement.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, which trusts have been identified by Getting It Right First Time as part of its Further Faster pilot to deliver rapid clinical transformation for patients with (a) Crohn's disease and (b) ulcerative colitis.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson
The Further, Faster pilots aim to accelerate service transformation across a range of specialities. Within gastroenterology, the pilots are driving forward interventions such as the introduction of Patient Initiated Follow Up, which can be beneficial for patients with chronic conditions like inflammatory bowel disease.
The following trusts are participating in the pilots as part of Cohort 1:
- Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust;
- Barts Health NHS Trust;
- Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust;
- George Eliot Hospital NHS Trust;
- Homerton Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust;
- Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust;
- Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust;
- Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust;
- Medway NHS Foundation Trust;
- Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust;
- Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust;
- Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust;
- Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust;
- Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust;
- Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust;
- South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust;
- The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust;
- The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust;
- Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust;
- United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust;
- University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust;
- University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust;
- Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust; and
- Wye Valley NHS Trust.
The following trusts are participating in the pilots as part of Cohort 2:
- Doncaster and Bassetlaw Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust;
- East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust;
- East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust;
- Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust;
- Isle of Wight NHS Trust;
- James Paget University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust;
- Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust;
- Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust;
- Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust;
- Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust;
- Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust;
- Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust;
- Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust;
- Stockport NHS Foundation Trust;
- The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust;
- University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust;
- University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust;
- University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust;
- University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust;
- University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust;
- Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust;
- Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust;
- Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust; and
- York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to tackle shortages in the supply of ADHD medicines.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson
We are aware of disruptions to the supply of medicines used for the management of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), primarily driven by issues which have resulted in capacity constraints at key manufacturing sites. We understand how frustrating and distressing medicine shortages can be and we want to assure patients that we are working with the respective manufacturers to resolve the issues as soon as possible and to ensure patients have continuous access to ADHD medicines in the United Kingdom, in the short and long term.
We have issued communications to the National Health Service to advise healthcare professionals on management of patients whilst there continue to be disruptions to supplies. Patients are advised to speak to their clinician regarding any concerns they have and to discuss the suitability of treatment with alternative medicines.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion Preseli)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the APPG on Brain Tumours Inquiry Report entitled Pathway to A Cure, whether his Department plans to work with the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency to encourage the inclusion of brain tumour patients in early phase cancer trials.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson
The Department of Health and Social Care welcomes the All-Party Parliamentary Group report, recommendations of which continue to be worked through with the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology, and UK Research and Innovation and the Medical Research Council.
A series of new measures are to be introduced by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency with support from partners to make it faster and easier to gain approval and to run clinical trials in the United Kingdom. As part of this, comprehensive new guidance, co-designed with various stakeholder groups, will be introduced to accompany the new legislative measures. This will ensure that UK clinical trials work in partnership with patients and the public and are representative of the diversity of people who may benefit from a medicine if the data generated ultimately lead to regulatory approval. The guidance will outline how to include patients meaningfully into the design and conduct of trials, and how to achieve diversity in trials in a way that is proportionate and achieves the best results.