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 impact of NHS prescribing guidance on access to lidocaine plasters on patients with chronic neuropathic pain who have previously experienced clinical benefit from that treatment.

There has been no assessment of the potential impact on patients with chronic neuropathic pain following publication of NHS England guidance on items which should not routinely be prescribed in primary care. This guidance is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/items-which-should-not-routinely-be-prescribed-in-primary-care-policy-guidance/