Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will reconsider the decision that the UKHSA will scale down the COVID-19 Infection Survey (CIS) announced in the Government’s Living with COVID-19 Strategy, published on 21 February 2022.
Answered by Maggie Throup
The Government will continue monitoring the virus through maintaining surveillance studies such as the Office for National Statistics’ COVID-19 Infection Survey and other data sources, including genomic sequencing. The Government will keep all surveillance activities under review to ensure we have the capabilities to monitor waves of COVID-19 and defend against future variants.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will extend the provision of free covid-19 tests to the unpaid carers of clinically vulnerable individuals in the community.
Answered by Gillian Keegan - Secretary of State for Education
The testing regimes for adult social care after 1 April 2022 are currently under review. Further details will be provided in due course.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when his Department will publish the Government’s Vaccine Strategy.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
England’s national all vaccine strategy has been delayed as a result of the Department’s ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The strategy is being kept under review given the continuously evolving understanding of COVID-19, its vaccines and vaccination programmes and the impact of these developments.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
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 support research into intra-nasal covid-19 vaccines.
Answered by Maggie Throup
The Department commissions research through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). The NIHR and UK Research and Innovation have funded rapid research to support the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including on nasal administration of vaccines. Approximately £580,000 in funding was awarded to Imperial College London towards a study looking at safety and lower airway immunogenicity of two candidate COVID-19 vaccines administered to the respiratory tract. Additionally, the NIHR is providing infrastructure support to two phase one studies in this area, including the study at Imperial College London. As the largest public funder of health and care research, the NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including intra-nasal COVID-19 vaccines.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when the roll out will begin of the primary course of covid-19 vaccination for children aged five to 11, who are in a clinical risk group or who are a household contact of someone who is immunosuppressed; when parents and caregivers will be able to book their children to get their vaccine; and what steps they will need to take to make that booking.
Answered by Maggie Throup
The COVID-19 vaccine programme for children aged five to 11 years old, who are in a clinical risk group or who are household contact of someone who is immunosuppressed began on 31 January 2022. General practice teams have identified eligible children and parents and guardians will be contacted by local National Health Service teams.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
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 provide financial support to local authorities for the provision of at-home HIV testing in all parts of England.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
Local authorities are responsible for the provision of HIV testing. Sexual health testing and prevention services, including HIV testing, are primarily funded by local authorities through the Public Health Grant. The Grant is ringfenced for use on public health activity although decisions on spending are made locally. During time-limited periods of specific national campaigning, such as National HIV Testing Week, the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities provides a postal HIV self-sampling service which is available in England.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, by what date all local authorities in England will be providing postal at-home HIV testing.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
Local authorities have primary responsibility for the provision of HIV testing. Decisions on how those tests are provided are therefore made locally. While most areas do provide services for at home HIV self-sampling services, there is no central requirement to do so.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether daily limits are in place on the number of postal at-home HIV tests available through local authorities.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
Local authorities have primary responsibility for the provision of HIV testing. Decisions on how those tests are provided are therefore made locally. While most areas do provide services for at home HIV self-sampling services, there is no central requirement to do so.
Asked by: Kim Johnson (Labour - Liverpool, Riverside)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of local authority provision of availability of at home HIV testing all year round; and what criteria is used to determine eligibility criteria for that testing.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
Local authorities have primary responsibility for the provision of HIV testing. Decisions on how those tests are provided are therefore made locally. While most areas do provide services for at home HIV self-sampling services, there is no central requirement to do so.