Asked by: David Tredinnick (Conservative - Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether representatives of his Department or Agencies attended the London international conference of the Homeopathic Research Institute on 14 - 17 June 2019; if his Department or agencies will make an assessment of the implications for their policies of papers presented at that conference; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Seema Kennedy
There was no representation made by the Department at this conference. The Department does not maintain a position on any particular complementary or alternative medicine treatments including homeopathy.
Asked by: David Tredinnick (Conservative - Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
What recent assessment he has made of the (a) value for money and (b) clinical outcomes of NHS treatments for musculoskeletal conditions.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence independently develops evidence based guidance on the clinical and cost-effectiveness of NHS treatment and care, including for musculoskeletal conditions, and recommends treatments that have been shown to improve patient outcomes.
Asked by: David Tredinnick (Conservative - Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will visit Hinckley to discuss the Hinckley and Bosworth Health and Wellbeing Partnership strategy of empowering people to manage their own physical and mental needs closer to home.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The Government supports the integration of health and care services and recognises the good work being done by the Hinckley and Bosworth Wellbeing Partnership by taking a multi-agency approach to increase the wellbeing of people and to support them to live independently in their own homes for longer. Officials will be in contact with the Health and Wellbeing Board to understand more about the work being done.
Asked by: David Tredinnick (Conservative - Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will hold discussions with the Ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy in India on those therapies; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Steve Brine
The Department has no plans to hold any such discussions and does not maintain a position on any particular complementary or alternative medicine treatments.
Asked by: David Tredinnick (Conservative - Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of the recommendations of the 2017 joint report from the Professional Standards Authority and the Royal Society for Public Health entitled Untapped Resources: Accredited Registers in the Wider Workforce.
Answered by Steve Brine
There is no plan to make an assessment of the merits of the recommendations in the report ‘Untapped Resources: Accredited Registers in the Wider Workforce’.
In 2016, Public Health England (PHE) published a report on this subject entitled ‘Fit for the Future: Public Health People’. Further information is available here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fit-for-the-future-public-health-people
PHE’s report identified the importance of the wider workforce in delivering the radical upgrade in prevention, alongside a core workforce with strong technical skills.
Asked by: David Tredinnick (Conservative - Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the cost implications to the NHS of any withdrawal of NHS homeopathic services and medicines.
Answered by Steve Brine
As he knows, NHS England is consulting on draft guidance for commissioners on low value prescription items which includes homeopathic services and medicines. The Government will always support the provision of safe, clinically-effective services for patients, in accordance with NICE recommendations.
Asked by: David Tredinnick (Conservative - Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he last met the Head of the Professional Standards Authority; what was discussed at that meeting; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Philip Dunne
My Rt hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health has not met one to one with the Chief Executive of the Professional Standards Authority.
Asked by: David Tredinnick (Conservative - Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the reasons were for his Department's announcement of 13 November 2015 that it intended to undertake a consultation on whether homeopathic prescriptions should be added to Schedule 1 of products not considered effective for us on the NHS; and what discussions he had on this announcement with external stakeholders prior to 13 November 2015.
Answered by Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford
The Government has made no such announcement and has not had discussions with external stakeholders.
Asked by: David Tredinnick (Conservative - Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether the Government said in correspondence to Bindmans LLP on 24 April 2015 that a blanket ban on homeopathic products would simply be unreasonable and disproportionate.
Answered by Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford
In correspondence to the Department of Health of February and April 2015, Bindmans LLP asked the Government for a blanket ban on the National Health Service prescribing of homeopathic products. Bindmans LLP argued for this on the basis of the costs of these products to the NHS and that homeopathic products were borderline substances.
In its April 2015 reply to Bindmans LLP, a Government official replied to explain that homeopathic products were, in fact, legally defined as medicines and the cost of homeopathic products in NHS primary care was small and reducing. Given this, we considered Bindmans LLP justification for their proposed ban as legally unreasonable and disproportionate.
Asked by: David Tredinnick (Conservative - Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the Government's policy is on enabling GPs to prescribe products which they consider appropriate for their patients rather than placing statutory restrictions on products open for prescription.
Answered by Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford
A general practitioner (GP) is able to prescribe any product on the National Health Service they consider necessary for the treatment of their patient unless it is listed in Schedules 1 or 2 to the NHS (General Medical Services Contracts) (Prescription of Drugs etc.) Regulations 2004. The Government is committed to the use of evidence-based therapies for NHS patients.
Schedule 1, commonly referred to as the blacklist, lists a number of drugs, medicines and other substances which GPs cannot prescribe on the NHS, for example, Ribena and some sun tan lotions. Schedule 2, commonly referred to as the greylist, lists drugs, medicines and other substances which GPs can only prescribe in certain circumstances on the NHS, for example influenza treatments for ‘at risk’ groups.