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 adequacy of access to prophylactics for immunocompromised people for whom vaccines are not effective.

Decisions about what medicines to prescribe are made by the doctor or healthcare professional responsible for that part of the patient’s care, working with their patient to decide on the best course of treatment with the provision of the most clinically appropriate care for the patient always being the primary consideration. Prescribers must always satisfy themselves that the medicines they consider appropriate for their patients can be safely prescribed and that they take account of appropriate national guidance on clinical effectiveness, as well as the local commissioning decisions of their respective integrated care boards.

The UK Health Security Agency provides guidance on alternative treatments that are recommended to be available to those that cannot be vaccinated and information regarding prophylactics that should be used for immunosuppressed individuals who are exposed to infections. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has also issued guidance for the National Health Service on the clinical and cost effectiveness of some medicines used for prophylaxis.

Decisions on whether licensed medicines, including those for prophylaxis, should be recommended for routine NHS funding are made independently by NICE, based on the evidence of costs and benefits.