Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme: Covid-19

Debate between Philippa Whitford and Maggie Throup

Tuesday 6th September 2022 Westminster Hall

[Maggie Throup]

Yes, we will definitely look into that on my right hon. and learned Friend’s behalf.

The VDPS payment amount has significantly increased since the original VDPS payment of £10,000 set in 1979. It has been revised several times and, as the hon. Member for Denton and Reddish (Andrew Gwynne) said, the current level was set in 2007. This will be kept under review as part of business-as-usual policy work. As my right hon. and learned Friend the Member for Kenilworth and Southam is aware, a successful claim to VDPS does not preclude an individual from bringing a claim for damages through the courts.

[Dr Whitford]

Will the Minister give way?

[Maggie Throup]

I am getting a bit short of time. Lots of points have been raised and I want to make sure that I cover them all, so I will continue.

In line with the pre-action protocol should a claim be brought, where the Government are party to any claim, they will consider whether alternative dispute resolution might enable the settlement of the claim without the need to commence proceedings. The form of any ADR would depend on the details of claims that are made.

My right hon. and learned Friend the Member for Kenilworth and Southam also raised concerns about the 60% disability threshold. That threshold was lowered from the initial 80% to 60% in 2002, and it remains aligned with the definition of severe disablement set out under the DWP’s industrial injuries disablement benefit, a widely accepted test of disability. There is no evidence at present that the current level is a significant barrier; in 2019 and 2020, just one claim out of 70 was rejected due to the disability threshold not being met. We will review the latest data as covid cases are processed, but at present, evidence does not support lowering the threshold.

Working alongside NHSBSA, our focus is now on improving the service offered by VDPS by scaling up operations and improving the underlying processes. Since taking over operational responsibility in November 2021, NHSBSA has transformed the administration of the VDPS, which was previously a paper-based system. It has significantly increased its capacity to meet the demands placed on the scheme, expanding from four to 40 caseworkers and additional support staff, with further recruitment under way. This means claims can be processed more quickly, with personalised engagement with applicants through the allocation of named caseworkers.

NHSBSA awarded a new contract to an independent third-party supplier in March 2022 to provide additional medical assessment capacity to process covid-19-related claims. That has allowed for the conclusion of the first of those claims. NHSBSA is working to digitise applications and medical records, streamlining the process. A wider modernisation project is also being taken forward to digitise the application form, to create a simpler and swifter process and allow caseworkers to manage claims more efficiently. To allow more rapid assessments and processing, NHSBSA is setting time limits for the provision of medical records, with a call-back process in place. Further approaches are being looked at to secure relevant medical documents faster, as this has been a key limiting factor in processing rates.

My right hon. and learned Friend the Member for Kenilworth and Southam raised concerns about the rate of progress of VDPS. I am sure that he will appreciate, from what I have just indicated, that there have been vast improvements over recent months. As an update, NHSBSA has 2,458 live cases, of which 1,203 claims are awaiting returns on requested medical records, 181 claims are with medical assessors, and 261 claims are awaiting requests for medical records. The average claim takes around six months to investigate and process from the date NHSBSA requests the claimant’s medical records. The timeframe varies from case to case. NHSBSA has scaled up a dedicated team of caseworkers, as I have indicated, to move claims forward and update claimants on the progress of their claims.

My right hon. and learned Friend raised an interesting question about establishing a bespoke compensation scheme for covid-19 vaccines. Establishing a dedicated, stand-alone compensation scheme would risk favouring those potentially damaged by covid-19 vaccines over those damaged by other vaccines. That could create an inequality between vaccines, which could be detrimental to other vaccination programmes.

I thank my right hon. and learned Friend again for securing this important debate. Everyone has made really sensible contributions, and we will take everything that has been said into consideration. I am pleased that a number of covid-19 VDPS claims have now been concluded, offering outcomes to claimants, with further cases being progressed. Now is not the right time to review the VDPS: our focus must be on improving and scaling up its operations and continuing to process claims. We will continue to further improve the service so that outcomes can be provided sooner, giving additional support to those who qualify.

Health Service Medical Supplies (Costs) Bill (First sitting)

Debate between Philippa Whitford and Maggie Throup

Committee Debate: 1st sitting: House of Commons
Tuesday 8th November 2016 Public Bill Committees

[Dr Whitford]

Q So you do not feel it is increasing access to new drugs in the way that was envisaged.

David Watson: That was the plan. I do not think it has achieved that. I think it could do. I agree with some of the comments that Dr Ridge made on this. It is quite complicated, for example, to imagine a big national medicines fund. I think that would have unintended consequences. I am not sure that is what the NHS wants. I think that there are other ways that we could address the real affordability challenge of new medicines, by finding a way to use this money through PPRS for the benefit of finding medicines for patients.

[Maggie Throup]

Q Currently, over-the-counter medicines are exempt from the proposals. Do you think that that is right, or do you think that if we do not actually include them in the proposals, we shall be sitting around this table again in a few years’ time, amending the legislation yet again? If you feel that they should be excluded, do you think that there are any other medicine groups that should be excluded or included in any other way?

David Watson: No, I think that the over-the-counter medicines exclusion is sensible. It is much easier for companies to report when they are not including over-the-counter sales. On your question about whether other medicines should be excluded, if we look at the intent of the Bill, which is to introduce a new payment mechanism for those companies that are in the statutory scheme, it was suggested in the previous panel that the problem with this is that companies are already agreeing deals with the NHS. I suspect that if we end up with a payment mechanism and deals with the NHS, there may be some reluctance to give the best deal possible to the NHS—if, at the same time, a payment is being made in addition to that. I think that may be one of the consequences of this.

Community Pharmacies

Debate between Philippa Whitford and Maggie Throup

Wednesday 2nd November 2016 Commons Chamber

[Maggie Throup (Erewash) (Con)]

As many hon. Members have already described, our community pharmacies play a vital role in all our communities. When my mum was seriously ill and housebound, her local pharmacist and all his staff were amazing. Nothing was too much trouble, whether it was changing her medicines at the last minute and delivering them to her home, or offering to deliver things like toothpaste and loo rolls at the same time. That is what community pharmacists are all about—being at the centre of the community, wherever they are.

Being part of the local community is even more important in rural areas, especially for the elderly who are often housebound, or have limited access to cars and so rely on public transport. That is why I welcome the pharmacy access scheme that the Minister has put in place. It should safeguard those pharmacies that are more than a mile apart and, more importantly, protect their patients. The Minister has gone further by adding in areas with high health needs. That must be welcomed, but I would like more specific information to help to reassure pharmacies in my constituency.

We all know that pharmacists can and want to do more. It is imperative that every community pharmacy across the country plays its part in providing first-class healthcare outside the hospital setting. Pharmacists are highly trained professionals with a wealth of knowledge that must be used to its fullest. As we hear time and again, our GPs are under a great deal of pressure. Our pharmacists are a group of professionals who can and do shoulder some of that workload. To name just a few of the services they can provide, they can give flu jabs, test cholesterol, monitor warfarin and check blood pressure. There is no reason why they cannot carry out other simple tests, such as point of care C-reactive protein tests to distinguish between viral and bacterial infections, and so play their role in combating antimicrobial resistance.

I have a request for the Minister. He should be more ambitious with the timescale for roll-out of the minor ailments service. We have already heard from the hon. Member for Central Ayrshire (Dr Whitford) about just how successful that service is in Scotland. We must combat any barriers that the CCGs put forward, as my hon. Friend the Member for Amber Valley (Nigel Mills) suggested.

The 18% increase in the number of pharmacies over the past 10 years has in many instances led to clusters of three or more pharmacies within just one location. Each gets a guaranteed payment of £25,000 every year regardless of the quality of service they offer, the number of prescriptions they process or whether increased capacity in the area was needed when they actually opened. I am sure many of my constituents will think that is wrong and wonder whether it is the right way to spend taxpayers’ money.

[Dr Philippa Whitford]

Does the hon. Lady recognise that pharmacies were allowed to open simply because they were willing to be open for 100 hours? The growth was random, and my concern is that this cut is random. Planning is the issue.

[Maggie Throup]

I completely agree that growth has not been controlled. We need to go back a number of years to learn from what happened and ensure it does not happen again. We also need to ensure that we put the right reforms in place now.

It is important that the £25,000, just for opening the doors, is not offered to other retail stores on the high street. It is vital we get the best possible deal for the taxpayer and the patient. The patient must be at the heart of everything. We must also remember that every pound saved by these changes will be invested back into the NHS. We need to get the important message out that, whether it is for cancer treatment or other life-saving treatment, every penny counts.

If the proposed reforms reward quality, pay pharmacists for their value added services and fully embed community pharmacists into the urgent care pathway, they will be welcome. However, we need to ensure they do what they are intended to do, and that we do not, as the hon. Member for Central Ayrshire said, end up with what we have now.