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 the availability of Produodopa treatment for people with Parkinson’s in (a) Stockport and (b) Greater Manchester.

The Department is not aware of a supply issue affecting Produodopa.

The Department monitors and manages medicine supply at a national level so that stocks remain available to meet regional and local demand. Information on stock levels within Stockport and Greater Manchester is not held centrally.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) makes recommendations for the National Health Service on whether new licensed medicines should be routinely funded by the NHS based on an assessment of their costs and benefits.

NICE has recommended Produodopa, also known as foslevodopa–foscarbidopa, for the treatment of advanced Parkinson's with motor symptoms. This treatment should now be available to NHS patients in line with NICE’s recommendations.

Decisions about what medicines to prescribe are made by the doctor or healthcare professional responsible for that part of the patient’s care. 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.