Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the timetable is for the four-hour sepsis blood-test to be made available on the NHS.

A number of research groups are working on rapid tests for sepsis and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) provides the National Health Service in England with advice on methodology. NICE last reviewed the evidence on sepsis earlier this year and did not recommend that any specific tests for sepsis were supported by sufficient evidence to recommend them routinely. We understand that a rapid sepsis blood test developed in Texas is about to be put into a clinical trial but it is too early to assess it.