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 increase the use of Freestyle Libra glucose monitoring equipment in the NHS to help monitor and control diabetes.

The NHS Long Term Plan set out a commitment that “in line with clinical guidelines, patients with type 1 diabetes benefit from life changing flash glucose monitors from April 2019, ending the variation patients in some parts of the country are facing”. This commitment was followed by published guidance in March 2019, which set out new national funding arrangements and included a specific target for 20% of all type 1 diabetics in England to receive access to flash glucose monitoring by March 2021.

By July 2020, 31.5% of all people living with type 1 diabetes in England had access to this technology. By March 2021, uptake had risen to 47%. As of 1 April 2021, commissioning and financial responsibility reverted to local commissioners, who are continuing to support patient access to this technology.