Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will take steps to (a) develop and (b) implement a rapid system of evaluating new protective and prophylactic Covid-19 drugs and treatments.
Answered by Will Quince
As we move out of the pandemic response, it is right that existing methods for understanding the clinical and cost-effectiveness of medicines are used to inform routine commissioning arrangements, including for new COVID-19 drugs and treatments.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent, expert body responsible for developing authoritative, evidence-based recommendations for the National Health Service on whether new medicines represent a clinically and cost-effective use of resources.
As part of supporting this transition, NICE published final guidance on 29 March that recommends three medicines as options for treating COVID-19 in adults. Because new COVID-19 variants develop over time, NICE is also developing a new review process to update its recommendations on the clinical and cost-effectiveness of COVID-19 treatments, so they can be made available more quickly to patients if they show promise against new variants and are found to be cost-effective. A four-week public consultation on proposals for the new rapid update process was launched on 6 April.
New medicines for COVID-19 that are referred to NICE by the Department will be evaluated through NICE’s technology appraisal process. NICE aims to publish guidance within 90 days of marketing authorisation (licensing) being issued by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. NICE works with stakeholders to align its appraisal timelines with the regulatory process.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent discussions he has had with Integrated Care Boards on (a) the impact of increases in the cost of living on people diagnosed with coeliac disease and (b) gluten free prescribing for people diagnosed with coeliac disease.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No specific discussions have been had. The majority of services for patients with coeliac disease are commissioned locally by integrated care boards, who are best placed to plan the provision of services subject to local prioritisation and funding.
A range of gluten free staples are available on prescription. Approximately 89% of prescription items are currently dispensed free of charge and there is a wide range of exemptions from prescription charges already in place for those with the greatest need.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
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 reduce waiting times for young people waiting for an (a) ADHD and (b) Autism diagnosis; and what recent discussions he has had with healthcare professionals on this.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
My Rt hon. Friend, The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, regularly discusses a range of matters with healthcare professionals.
It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including assessments and diagnosis for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or autism.
ICBs and NHS trusts should have due regard to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: diagnosis and management; Autism spectrum disorder in under 19s: support and management’ and ‘Autism spectrum disorder in adults: diagnosis and management’. These NICE guidelines aim to improve the diagnosis of ADHD and autism and the quality of care and support that people receive.
In 2022/23 we invested £2.5 million to test and embed improved autism diagnostic pathways. In 2023/24 there is funding of £4.2 million to improve services for autistic children and young people, including, to continue to transform and develop autism assessment and diagnosis services and pre- and post-diagnostic support to children and young people aged zero to 25 years old and continuation of the ‘Autism in Schools’ programme.
On 5 April 2023, NHS England published a national framework and operational guidance for autism assessment services. These documents are intended to help the National Health Service and local authorities improve autism assessment services and improve the experience for adults and children who are going through an autism assessment.
The Department is looking into options for improving data collection and reporting on waiting times for ADHD assessments and diagnosis.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of appointing a commissioner for older people and ageing.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
The Department has no current plans to assess the potential merits of appointing a commissioner for older people and ageing, as the needs of older people and healthy ageing are covered by the NHS Health Check and an ambitious prevention agenda to reduce individuals’ risk of ill health later in life.
The Office for Health Improvement and Disparities is taking targeted actions to tackle the most common preventable diseases, improving access and uptake of prevention services, and embedding prevention across health and care. For example, encouraging people in mid-life to stop smoking, reduce their alcohol consumption and improve their diet to help reduce the risk of developing dementia, disability and frailty in later life.
Finally, the Government recently announced that it will publish a Major Conditions Strategy which will set out a strong and coherent policy agenda that sets out a shift to integrated, whole-person care. The Strategy will tackle conditions that contribute most to morbidity and mortality across the population in England, including cancers, cardiovascular disease, stroke, diabetes, chronic respiratory diseases, dementia, mental ill-health and musculoskeletal conditions. An interim report will be published in the summer.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time for an (a) autism and (b) ADHD diagnosis was for (i) everyone, (ii) children, (iii) young people and (iv) adults in the most recent year for which data is available.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The data requested is not held centrally.
However, data from the Mental Health Service Data Set (MHSDS) for 1 August 2021 to 31 July 2022 in England indicates that 158,901 patients had an open referral (assessment not yet complete) for suspected autism. Of these, 27,050 have received a first attended contact within the year. The median wait time for these 27,050 patients was 207 days.
98,056 patients aged under 18 at the time of referral had an open referral for suspected autism. Of these 18,747 have received a first attended contact within the year. The median wait time for these 18,747 patients was 231 days.
60,860 patients aged 18 or over at time of referral had an open referral for suspected autism. Of these 8,309 have received a first attended contact within the year. The median wait time for these 8,309 patients was 127 days.
We recognise that a lot of autism assessments for children are reported through the Community Services Data Set (CSDS), however it is not currently possible to correctly identify referrals for suspected autism in the CSDS and so we are unable to provide average wait times for this activity. Therefore, the current reported autism data comes from the MHSDS only. A number of providers of MHSDS data were affected by a cyber incident which has had a substantial impact on the data. Therefore, data presented in this answer are imputed estimates based on data from providers not impacted by the cyber incident. The trends and activity reported by these providers is, for the most part, reflective of the providers who were impacted by the cyber incident. However, extreme caution should be used when interpreting these figures.
Data for waiting times for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) assessments is not held centrally. The Department is looking into options for improving data collection and reporting on waiting times for ADHD assessments and diagnoses.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of providing free dental care to all cancer patients.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
We have no current plans to make a specific assessment.
There are a range of exemptions to National Health Service dental patient charges. Further information is available on the NHS website at the following link:
https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/dentists/dental-costs/get-help-with-dental-costs/
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent discussions he has had with the Royal College of Nursing’s General Secretary on (a) pay and (b) conditions for nurses.
Answered by Will Quince
The Government held intensive talks on pay and non-pay matters with unions, including the Royal College of Nursing, between 22 February and 16 March 2023. Following those talks the Government put forward a best and final offer on pay and conditions. That offer includes additional non-consolidated payments for 2022/23 on top of the consolidated pay rise staff members have already received and a consolidated pay rise of at least 5% in 2023/24. The Royal College of Nursing has recommended to their members that they accept the Government’s offer.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
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 proposals for a compensation, settlement and pension scheme for key workers affected by long covid.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
No assessment has been made. The Department of Health and Social Care continues to work with the Department for Work and Pensions, and as more evidence about the disease emerges, will consider the Government’s provisions and approach for those key workers experiencing the long-term effects of COVID-19.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will consider the potential merits of (a) ensuring that the Good Choice badge in the NHS Food Scanner App is not applied to ultra-processed food products, (b) introducing dietary guidelines on consumption of ultra-processed foods, (c) introducing targets for reducing consumption of ultra-processed food by 2030, (d) conducting research on families' experience of accessing (i) ultra-processed and (ii) healthy foods and (e) taking steps to ensure the (A) accessibility and (B) affordability of healthy foods.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
The Government encourages everyone to have a healthy balanced diet in line with the United Kingdom’s healthy eating model, the Eatwell Guide, which shows that foods high in fat, salt or sugar should be eaten less often or in small amounts.
UK Government dietary guidelines are based on recommendations from the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN). SACN is currently carrying out a scoping review of the evidence on processed foods and health and aims to publish its initial assessment in the summer of 2023.
There is currently no universally agreed definition of ultra-processed foods. However, a diet high in foods classified as processed is often high in calories, salt, saturated fat and sugar and low in fibre, fruit and vegetables, which is associated with an increased risk of obesity and developing chronic diseases including cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and some cancers.
The Good Choice badge helps people identify healthier options using the NHS Food Scanner app and when shopping in store and online. The app helps families to see what is in their food and drinks and suggests healthier alternatives, where these exist, that can help them cut down on sugar, saturated fat and salt. The Good Choice badge is underpinned by nutrition criteria that determine which products can display the badge.
The app and wider Better Health campaign supports families on their journey towards having a healthier diet, as making the step to the healthiest option may be too far for many people in one move.
The Department, through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), funds a range of important research on obesity. This includes a project in the NIHR Obesity Policy Research Unit investigating how families in areas of low income experience food environments and another project investigating factors that drive parental decisions regarding food provision for infants across socio-economic position.
The Healthy Start Scheme supports eligible low-income families to buy fresh fruit and vegetables. Recipients are also eligible for free Healthy start vitamins, boosting the long-term health of their children. The value of these vouchers was increased from £3.10 to £4.25 a week in April 2021, ensuring more families can have access to healthy and nourishing foods.
The Department for Education spend over £1 billion each year on free school meals. This includes around £600 million on Universal Infant Free School Meals, where the per meal rate has been increased to £2.41, backdated to April 2022 in recognition of recent cost pressures.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to provide (a) energy bill and (b) other financial support to people with Raynaud’s.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
The Government recognises that rising energy prices can make it more difficult for people to heat their homes, and that cold homes can have an adverse impact on the health of vulnerable population groups. The Government’s cost of living support package includes specific measures aimed at the most vulnerable. This cost of living support is worth £26 billion in 2023/24, in addition to benefits uprating, which is worth £11 billion to working age households and disabled people. The Household Support Fund will provide £1 billion in 2023/24 to be spent locally on tailored support for the most vulnerable households. We know that there are good examples of the National Health Service and local authorities working together to ensure this support helps people with particular health vulnerabilities.
The Government is also helping all households with their energy bills through the Energy Price Guarantee. Over this winter the Government has paid around half of a typical household’s energy bill, cutting the average bill by £1,300 this winter.