Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
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 people with severe Myalgic encephalomyelitis in the context of delays to the consideration of a specialised service for people with very severe Myalgic encephalomyelitis and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Officials in the Department and NHS England, together with stakeholders, are currently considering interim measures to support patients with very severe myalgic encephalomyelitis, also known as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS).
Officials have considered the impact of the abolition of NHS England and the changes to integrated care boards (ICBs) on the actions within the final delivery plan on ME/CFS from July 2025.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impacts of a) the abolition of NHS England and b) changes to ICBs on the final delivery plan for myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
Officials in the Department and NHS England, together with stakeholders, are currently considering interim measures to support patients with very severe myalgic encephalomyelitis, also known as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS).
Officials have considered the impact of the abolition of NHS England and the changes to integrated care boards (ICBs) on the actions within the final delivery plan on ME/CFS from July 2025.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department are taking to help prevent delays to spinal operations including where infrastructure such as operating room seals are broken leading to operations being cancelled and delayed.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises the significant impact that delays to spinal surgery can have on patients and is taking action to reduce waiting times and minimise cancellations.
As set out in the Elective Reform Plan, we are increasing elective capacity and improving productivity across the National Health Service, including through the expansion of dedicated surgical hubs. These hubs use ringfenced staff and facilities to protect planned operations from urgent and emergency pressures.
NHS England also provides targeted national and regional support to trusts with the greatest waiting list pressures, including through the clinically led Getting It Right First Time programme and their Further Faster programme for spinal services.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the impact of delayed and cancelled spinal operations on patients' lives and b) what support is available to patients awaiting spinal operations for months or years.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises the significant impact that delays to spinal surgery can have on patients and is taking action to reduce waiting times and minimise cancellations.
As set out in the Elective Reform Plan, we are increasing elective capacity and improving productivity across the National Health Service, including through the expansion of dedicated surgical hubs. These hubs use ringfenced staff and facilities to protect planned operations from urgent and emergency pressures.
NHS England also provides targeted national and regional support to trusts with the greatest waiting list pressures, including through the clinically led Getting It Right First Time programme and their Further Faster programme for spinal services.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
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 help ensure that delays to spinal operations are mitigated against and minimised.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises the significant impact that delays to spinal surgery can have on patients and is taking action to reduce waiting times and minimise cancellations.
As set out in the Elective Reform Plan, we are increasing elective capacity and improving productivity across the National Health Service, including through the expansion of dedicated surgical hubs. These hubs use ringfenced staff and facilities to protect planned operations from urgent and emergency pressures.
NHS England also provides targeted national and regional support to trusts with the greatest waiting list pressures, including through the clinically led Getting It Right First Time programme and their Further Faster programme for spinal services.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has considered the potential merits of providing funding for speech therapy for those suffering from primary progressive aphasia.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The provision of dementia health care services is the responsibility of local integrated care boards (ICBs) and may include speech and language therapy. We expect ICBs to commission services based on local population needs, taking account of National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
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 those suffering from primary progressive aphasia.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The provision of dementia health care services is the responsibility of local integrated care boards (ICBs) and may include speech and language therapy. We expect ICBs to commission services based on local population needs, taking account of National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.
The Government is committed to improving care for everyone with dementia, including those with Primary Progressive Aphasia, which is why we have funded the work of the Dementia 100: Assessment Tool Pathway programme, which brings together multiple resources into a single, consolidated tool. This will help simplify best practice for busy system leaders and help create communities and services where the best possible care and support is available to those with dementia.
A number of experts, including those with expertise in speech and language therapy and dementia care, provided independent, desktop analysis of the tool, and this invaluable feedback was integrated into the tool. The D100: Pathway Assessment Tool can be found at the following link:
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what support is available for those suffering from primary progressive aphasia.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The provision of dementia health care services is the responsibility of local integrated care boards (ICBs) and may include speech and language therapy. We expect ICBs to commission services based on local population needs, taking account of National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines.
The Government is committed to improving care for everyone with dementia, including those with Primary Progressive Aphasia, which is why we have funded the work of the Dementia 100: Assessment Tool Pathway programme, which brings together multiple resources into a single, consolidated tool. This will help simplify best practice for busy system leaders and help create communities and services where the best possible care and support is available to those with dementia.
A number of experts, including those with expertise in speech and language therapy and dementia care, provided independent, desktop analysis of the tool, and this invaluable feedback was integrated into the tool. The D100: Pathway Assessment Tool can be found at the following link:
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, a) what steps he is taking to support parents to have 3 cycles of free NHS IVF in all areas of the country b) what steps he is taking to help reduce financial barriers to becoming a parent and c) what steps he is taking to combat the disease of infertility as categorised by the WHO.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Funding decisions for health services in England are made by integrated care boards (ICBs) and are based on the clinical needs of their local population. We expect these organisations to commission fertility services in line with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines, to support equitable access to fertility treatment across England.
We expect ICBs to take account of the updated NICE guidance, published 31 March, in their commissioning decisions. The guidance recommends that women under 40 years old, who meet the clinical eligibility criteria, should be offered up to three full cycles of in vitro fertilisation and sets out new and updated recommendations for diagnosing and treating health related fertility problems with the aim of improving how they are investigated and managed. We expect all ICBs to consider and reflect the updated NICE fertility guideline in their commissioning decisions and we are working with NHS England to better understand the offer around National Health Service funded fertility services and support more consistent provision. Reducing unwarranted variation in access to NHS-funded fertility services will help to reduce the financial barriers faced by patients in becoming parents.
We also recognise that there are areas where the fertility evidence base could be strengthened, and we will consider how best to support further research and data collection as work progresses.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the recent decision that all Greater Manchester boroughs offer 1 cycle of free NHS IVF, in the context of the NICE guideline advising 3+ cycles and some boroughs such as Stockport previously offering 2 or 3 cycles.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No assessment has been made by the Department. Funding decisions for health services in England are made by integrated care boards (ICBs) and are based on the clinical needs of their local population.
On 31 March, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published its updated fertility guideline, which recommends that women under 40 years old who meet the clinical eligibility criteria should be offered up to three full cycles of in vitro fertilisation.
We expect all ICBs to consider and reflect the updated NICE fertility guideline in their commissioning decisions, and we are working with NHS England to support greater consistency in provision.