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Written Question
Patients: Travel
Monday 11th March 2024

Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)

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 implementing a fund for cancer patients aged up to 25 to cover the cost of travel to attend treatment (a) from the point of diagnosis, (b) throughout the duration of the cancer treatment and (c) without means testing.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

NHS England and the integrated care boards are responsible for commissioning and ensuring healthcare needs of local communities in England are met, including for children and young people with cancer. The National Health Service in England runs schemes to provide financial assistance for travel to a hospital or other NHS premises for specialist NHS treatment or diagnostics tests, when referred by a doctor or other primary healthcare professional.

The NHS Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme provides financial assistance to patients who do not have a medical need for transport, but who require assistance with the costs of travelling to receive certain NHS services. The Department has not made a formal assessment of the effectiveness of the scheme in supporting with the cost of travel to cancer treatment, for people with cancer aged up to 25 years old, and their families. Additionally, there are currently no plans for the Department to make a formal assessment of the potential merits of implementing a fund for cancer patients aged up to 25 years old, to cover the cost of travel to attend treatment, without means testing.

The Department does not hold data on applications to the Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme by cancer patients up to 25 years old, or families of a child with cancer, in the United Kingdom and from Northern Ireland, who travel to receive treatment in England.


Written Question
Patients: Travel
Monday 11th March 2024

Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she has had discussions with the Secretaries of State for (a) Northern Ireland, (b) Scotland, (c) Wales and (d) Transport on financial support for people aged up to 25 with cancer for cross-border travel within the UK to receive treatment.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

NHS England and the integrated care boards are responsible for commissioning and ensuring healthcare needs of local communities in England are met, including for children and young people with cancer. The National Health Service in England runs schemes to provide financial assistance for travel to a hospital or other NHS premises for specialist NHS treatment or diagnostics tests, when referred by a doctor or other primary healthcare professional.

The NHS Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme provides financial assistance to patients who do not have a medical need for transport, but who require assistance with the costs of travelling to receive certain NHS services. The Department has not made a formal assessment of the effectiveness of the scheme in supporting with the cost of travel to cancer treatment, for people with cancer aged up to 25 years old, and their families. Additionally, there are currently no plans for the Department to make a formal assessment of the potential merits of implementing a fund for cancer patients aged up to 25 years old, to cover the cost of travel to attend treatment, without means testing.

The Department does not hold data on applications to the Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme by cancer patients up to 25 years old, or families of a child with cancer, in the United Kingdom and from Northern Ireland, who travel to receive treatment in England.


Written Question
Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme: Cancer
Monday 11th March 2024

Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data her Department holds on applications to the Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme by (a) cancer patients up to 25 and (b) families of a child with cancer (i) in the UK and (ii) from Northern Ireland who travel to receive treatment in England.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

NHS England and the integrated care boards are responsible for commissioning and ensuring healthcare needs of local communities in England are met, including for children and young people with cancer. The National Health Service in England runs schemes to provide financial assistance for travel to a hospital or other NHS premises for specialist NHS treatment or diagnostics tests, when referred by a doctor or other primary healthcare professional.

The NHS Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme provides financial assistance to patients who do not have a medical need for transport, but who require assistance with the costs of travelling to receive certain NHS services. The Department has not made a formal assessment of the effectiveness of the scheme in supporting with the cost of travel to cancer treatment, for people with cancer aged up to 25 years old, and their families. Additionally, there are currently no plans for the Department to make a formal assessment of the potential merits of implementing a fund for cancer patients aged up to 25 years old, to cover the cost of travel to attend treatment, without means testing.

The Department does not hold data on applications to the Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme by cancer patients up to 25 years old, or families of a child with cancer, in the United Kingdom and from Northern Ireland, who travel to receive treatment in England.


Written Question
Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme: Cancer
Monday 11th March 2024

Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the NHS Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme in supporting (a) people with cancer aged up to 25 and (b) their families with the cost of travel to cancer treatment.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

NHS England and the integrated care boards are responsible for commissioning and ensuring healthcare needs of local communities in England are met, including for children and young people with cancer. The National Health Service in England runs schemes to provide financial assistance for travel to a hospital or other NHS premises for specialist NHS treatment or diagnostics tests, when referred by a doctor or other primary healthcare professional.

The NHS Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme provides financial assistance to patients who do not have a medical need for transport, but who require assistance with the costs of travelling to receive certain NHS services. The Department has not made a formal assessment of the effectiveness of the scheme in supporting with the cost of travel to cancer treatment, for people with cancer aged up to 25 years old, and their families. Additionally, there are currently no plans for the Department to make a formal assessment of the potential merits of implementing a fund for cancer patients aged up to 25 years old, to cover the cost of travel to attend treatment, without means testing.

The Department does not hold data on applications to the Healthcare Travel Costs Scheme by cancer patients up to 25 years old, or families of a child with cancer, in the United Kingdom and from Northern Ireland, who travel to receive treatment in England.


Written Question
Cancer: North Antrim
Tuesday 12th September 2023

Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)

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 reduce the length of time between (a) urgent GP referrals and (b) the commencement of treatment for cancer in North Antrim constituency.

Answered by Will Quince

Health in Northern Ireland is a devolved matter; therefore, the Department does not hold this information centrally.


Written Question
Radiotherapy
Tuesday 12th September 2023

Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)

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 ensure that reporting mechanisms are in place to inform the (a) public and (b) parliament how the nine statutory joint radiotherapy committees are improving access to modern radiotherapy.

Answered by Will Quince

The nine statutory joint committees between NHS England and multi-integrated care board (ICB) collaborations established on 1 April 2023 are working to improve access to specialised services by bringing together regional specialised commissioning expertise and integrated care systems (ICSs). These committees have joint responsibility for commissioning decisions on 59 specialised services, including radiotherapy. A list of these services is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/board-2-feb-23-item-7-annex-a-final-spa-lists.pdf

Reporting mechanisms are in place as part of ICS governance, with ICB leaders publishing an annual report to their population stating what their health and healthcare services are delivering for their population and communities.

To ensure appropriate oversight and assurance of specialised services under the nine statutory joint committees in 2023/24, NHS England produced guidance for its regional teams and ICBs. The guidance sets out four key areas that NHS England's regional specialised commissioning teams, working with and through the joint committees, should be regularly overseeing and monitoring in relation to their specialised provision (including providers of radiotherapy services): timeliness of provision; quality of provision; use of resources and value for money; and equity and health inequalities.


Written Question
Antimicrobials: Drug Resistance
Monday 4th September 2023

Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the funding for antimicrobial resistance research through the Global AMR Innovation Fund, whether his Department has a long-term investment strategy for stimulating non-profit innovation to help tackle antimicrobial resistance.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

Research and innovation are crucial pillars of activity under the Government’s five-year National Action Plan (NAP), covering the period 2019 to 2024, for tackling antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and will continue to be a priority under the next NAP. The Government is currently developing this second five-year NAP, which will run from 2024 to 2029. This includes development of a series research priorities, commitments, and deliverables.

As part of this approach, the Global AMR Innovation Fund (GAMRIF) is a One Health UK aid fund that supports research and development around the world to reduce the threat of AMR in humans, animals, and the environment for the benefit of people in low- and middle-income countries. GAMRIF collaborates with academia, non-profit global initiatives, industry, and governments to support innovation and product development, while also ensuring sustained investment from other global donors to tackle AMR.


Written Question
Incontinence: Medical Equipment
Wednesday 28th June 2023

Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what guidance he has issued to (a) providers of (i) inpatient and (ii) outpatient care and (b) patients receiving community care on (A) the assessment and selection of the most clinically appropriate absorbent continence care products for patients with incontinence and (B) the delivery of person centred care; and whether he has made an estimate of the cost of provision of products other than the most clinically appropriate for such patients.

Answered by Will Quince

While no known central guidance has been issued to date on this topic, local areas may have developed a local formulary where they recommend the use of specific products. We have not made a central estimate of the cost of different provision. However, we are working to improve spend data systems through implementation of the medtech strategy.

National Health Service commissioners in England are responsible for urinary continence care based on the available evidence and taking into account guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence.Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for the commissioning of health services in their local health economy.

NHS England’s Excellence in Continence Care guidance, published in July 2018, which brings together evidence-based resources and research for guidance for commissioners, providers, health and social care staff, further indicates that personalised care including personal health budgets can be arranged locally by ICBs to help people manage and pay for their continence care needs.


Written Question
Abortion: Drugs
Monday 26th June 2023

Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to his Department's guidance entitled Procedures for the approval of independent sector places for termination of pregnancy (abortion) in England, what specific implications relating to the taking of abortion medicines beyond the legal limit of 9 weeks and 6 days gestation women should be made aware of under that guidance when having an early medical abortion at home.

Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)

Women having an early medical abortion at home should be informed of the implications, health and otherwise, of taking the abortion medicine beyond the legal limit of nine weeks and six days gestation. Women would also be advised on self-management including any signs and symptoms and when to obtain healthcare support, how to dispose of or return the abortion pills if they are not used and how they can be sure that the pregnancy has ended.

The Department’s Required Standard Operating Procedures, which all independent abortion providers must comply with, set out that woman seeking an abortion should be informed about their options so that they can make an informed choice about their preferred course of action within the legal framework for abortion in England.


Written Question
Cancer: Diagnosis
Monday 27th February 2023

Asked by: Ian Paisley (Democratic Unionist Party - North Antrim)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how the major conditions strategy will reduce waiting times for cancer diagnoses and treatment.

Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Major Conditions Strategy will look at all cancer types, covering the patient pathway from prevention, through treatment, to follow-up care. The strategy will look at a wide range of interventions and enablers to improve outcomes and experience for cancer patients.