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 ensure that people are able to access menopause services at their GP practice.

The menopause is a priority area within the Women’s Health Strategy. The NHS England national menopause improvement programme is working to improve clinical care for menopause.

Menopause is a core competency for qualified general practitioners (GPs). The Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) has a holistic curriculum of training that all GPs must cover before they are able to pass the examination to become a member of the RCGP and work independently as a GP. There is a specific section on women’s health, including the menopause.

We have reduced the cost of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) prescriptions through a bespoke HRT prescription pre-payment certificate. From 1 April 2023, women can pay a one-off charge equivalent to two single prescription charges (£19.30) for all their HRT prescriptions for a year.