Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for how long she plans to keep the serious shortage protocols for hormone replacement therapy medicines in place.
The Department monitors the market and works with suppliers, which enables serious shortage protocols (SSPs) to be introduced, withdrawn, amended or extended to take account of changes in the supply situation. There are currently 14 SSPs in place to manage and mitigate medicine supply issues, which ensures that hormone replacement therapy products continue to be available.