Asked by: David Drew (Labour (Co-op) - Stroud)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with his European counterparts to ensure that British residents can access dialysis when travelling to countries (a) within the EU and (b) which have existing health agreements with the EU.
Answered by Chris Skidmore
The Government has proposed to all European Union Member States that when we leave, we should maintain the existing healthcare arrangements until 31 December 2020, with the aim of minimising disruption to healthcare provision for United Kingdom nationals and EU citizens.
A number of member states, including Spain and Belgium, have already prepared legislation that will protect the healthcare rights of UK nationals travelling and living in-country after 31 October 2019.
Asked by: David Drew (Labour (Co-op) - Stroud)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to ensure that existing mutual aid arrangements for dialysis will continue after the UK leaves the EU; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Chris Skidmore
The Government has proposed to all European Union Member States that if the United Kingdom leaves the EU without a deal, we should maintain existing healthcare arrangements until 31 December 2020, with the aim of minimising disruption to healthcare provision for UK nationals and EU citizens. This is subject to negotiations, which are ongoing, and we are hopeful that we can agree reciprocal healthcare arrangements.
A number of Member States, including Spain and Belgium, have already prepared legislation that will protect the healthcare rights of UK-insured individuals travelling and living in-country after 31 October 2019.
Asked by: David Drew (Labour (Co-op) - Stroud)
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 26 June 2019 to Question 269620 on Hearing Impairment, what steps his Department has taken to (a) issue and (b) promote commissioning guidance to clinical commissioning groups in relation to people with hearing loss.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The Commissioning Framework for Hearing Loss Services was published in July 2016. The guidance has been shared with commissioners in England through usual channels. Third sector organisations also promoted the Framework as did hearing loss service providers. A launch event at Portcullis House hosted by the Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on deafness and hearing loss was held on 19 July 2019 along with a number of events pre and post publication of the Framework, including a presentation to the British Academy of Audiology and attendance at the NHS Roadshow.
Asked by: David Drew (Labour (Co-op) - Stroud)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information his Department holds on studies undertaken by the Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollutants (COMEAP) on the effects on human health of (a) PM0.1 and (b) PM1.
Answered by Seema Kennedy
Public Health England provides the Scientific Secretariat for the Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollutants, an advisory committee of independent experts that provides advice to Government departments and agencies on how air pollution impacts on health. No assessment of the impact of PM1 and PM0.1 components of particulate air pollution has been produced.
A comprehensive list of the Committee’s publications can be accessed at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/comeap-reports
Asked by: David Drew (Labour (Co-op) - Stroud)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information his Department holds on studies carried out by the (a) National Institute for Health Research and (b) NHS Health Protection Research Unit into the effects on human health of (i) PM1 and (ii) PM0.1.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The Department invests over £1 billion a year in health research through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). The NIHR supports a wide range of work on the health effects of air pollution through various funding streams, including research on the impacts of fine particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 μm or less (PM2.5). The majority of research commissioned is focussed on a wide range of pollutants and unless otherwise stated, most studies have not differentiated between PM2.5, PM1.0 and PM0.1.
Information on the research projects commissioned and their findings are published by the NIHR in a dedicated journals library which can be found at the following link:
https://www.journalslibrary.nihr.ac.uk/programmes/
Asked by: David Drew (Labour (Co-op) - Stroud)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what research his Department has undertaken (a) directly, (b) through research councils and (c) with international partners on antimicrobial resistance.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The Department is investing over £1 billion a year in health research through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). The NIHR supports a wide portfolio of research on antimicrobial resistance (AMR) through various funding streams. In the United Kingdom, investment includes £32 million of capital funding to support AMR research, £19.1 million for AMR research at four NIHR Biomedical Research Centres, and £8.8 million for two NIHR Health Protection Research Units on Healthcare Associated Infections and Antimicrobial Resistance.
The NIHR also supports research into AMR in low and middle-income countries (LMICs), with official development assistance (ODA) funding through the NIHR Global Health Research programme. Investment includes support for the NIHR Global Health Research Unit on Genomic Surveillance of Antimicrobial Resistance, and the NIHR Global Health Research Group on Genomic Surveillance of Malaria in West Africa.
Working through partnerships with other UK funders, the NIHR Global Health Research programme also supports cross-Research Council initiatives including one led by the Medical Research Council for research into AMR in a global context, and another led by the Economic and Social Research Council to expand understanding of how behaviour within and beyond the healthcare system impacts on AMR.
In addition, the Department has allocated over £50 million of ODA over five years to AMR research through the Global AMR Innovation Fund. This research is delivered through a range of mechanisms and delivery partners, including research councils such as the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council and Innovate UK, and international partners including the Wellcome Trust, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the United States and German governments, and Canada’s International Development Research Centre.
Asked by: David Drew (Labour (Co-op) - Stroud)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to introduce the NICE guidelines on hearing loss across all Clinical Commissioning Groups.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
Clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) are expected to take account of National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines published in 2018 on ‘Hearing loss in adults: assessment and management’, alongside local priorities when commissioning hearing loss services. The guidelines have formed the basis for the development a quality standard for adult-onset hearing loss, that CCGs can use to support commissioning, and which NICE will publish and promote on 10 July 2019.
Asked by: David Drew (Labour (Co-op) - Stroud)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data his Department holds on the safe level of exposure to (a) PM0.1, (b) PM1 and (c) PM2.5.
Answered by Seema Kennedy
It is not possible to determine, based on the currently available evidence, whether there is a safe level of exposure to particulate matter PM0.1, PM1 or PM2.5.
However, the World Health Organization has developed air quality guidelines for air pollutants. These guidelines can be viewed at the following link:
Asked by: David Drew (Labour (Co-op) - Stroud)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent research on the effects on levels of public health of emissions of (a) PM2.5, (b) PM1 and (c) PM0.1 from waste incinerators (i) he has undertaken and (ii) has formed the basis of an assessment of the implications for his policies.
Answered by Seema Kennedy
Public Health England (PHE) has funded a study to further extend the evidence base on municipal waste incinerators (MWIs). The study found that emissions of particulate matter (PM10) from MWIs are low and make only a small contribution to ambient background levels. The report is available at the following link:
http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.est.6b06478
No evidence was found of a link between exposure to PM10, which includes PM2.5, PM1 and PM0.1 emitted from MWIs and infant mortality, or the other birth outcomes investigated. Further information is available at the following link:
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2018.10.060
The latest paper found no increased risk of congenital anomalies from exposure to PM10 emissions, however living closer to the incinerators was associated with a very small increase in risk of some birth defects. As acknowledged by the authors, this finding may be because the study could not fully adjust for factors such as other sources of pollution around MWIs or deprivation. The report is available at the following link:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412019308104
PHE’s position remains that well run and regulated modern MWIs are not a significant risk to public health. PHE will review its advice in light of new substantial research on the health effects of incinerators published in peer reviewed journals. To date, PHE is not aware of any evidence that requires a change in their position statement. This statement can be viewed at the following link:
Asked by: David Drew (Labour (Co-op) - Stroud)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to page five of Public Health England's position statement on the impact on health of emissions to air from municipal waste incinerators, what steps Public Health England is taking to increase its understanding of the measurement of number concentrations of particles in health terms.
Answered by Seema Kennedy
Public Health England (PHE) undertakes various air quality research projects, working with academic partners, to review the evidence for the health effects of air pollutants, regarding the health effects of particulate matter (PM0.1 and PM1). PHE is a partner in two health protection research units funded by the National Institute for Health Research, whose remit includes air pollution research. These projects can be viewed at the following link:
http://www.hpru-ech.nihr.ac.uk/
PHE also draws on scientific studies and reviews published in the peer reviewed literature and by authoritative bodies.