Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he is taking steps to improve access to (a) technological and (b) psychological support for people with diabetes.

The latest technological support for people with diabetes, the hybrid closed loop system (the ‘artificial pancreas’) is currently progressing through the final stages of a Technical Assessment by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Ensuring that these technologies can be provided on the National Health Service at a cost-effective price increases access to these technologies for all eligible people.

The latest data shows over 60% of people with Type 1 diabetes were prescribed flash glucose monitoring, against an NHS Long Term Plan target of 20%. When the programme commenced, Flash was twice more likely to be prescribed to patients living in the most affluent areas. The current ratio between most and least affluent is now down to less than 1.2 times more likely, with many areas reporting complete parity.

As of October 2022, 97% of pregnant women living with type 1 diabetes were offered continuous glucose monitoring. The latest figures indicate that there is equitable access to the technology across deciles and ethnicities in the Indices of Multiple Deprivation.

NHS England has commissioned digital support programmes for people with diabetes. People with type 1 diabetes can self-refer to ‘MyType1 Diabetes’ and people with type 2 diabetes can self-refer to the online Healthy Living Programme.

Approximately 72% of children and young people living with type 1 diabetes have registered with the Digibete app, a free online service to support children and young people to manage their type 1 diabetes.

The Spring 2023 Budget contained a package of over £400 million to support the long-term sick, and disabled. This includes approximately £200 million for digital mental health – to modernise NHS Talking Therapies services in England. NHS Talking Therapies services provide evidence-based psychological treatments for people with depression and anxiety disorders, and comorbid long-term physical health conditions such as diabetes.

Building on Type 1 Disordered Eating (T1DE) pilots the NHS Diabetes Programme approved funding for five additional T1DE sites.