Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the risk that COVID-19 poses to recipients of kidney transplants.

Public safety throughout this period has been the Government’s top priority. Patients who have had a kidney transplant, along with other patients who have had solid organ transplants and remain on long-term immune suppression therapy, have been classified as clinically extremely vulnerable. All transplant recipients have received information about what steps they should take to make sure they remain shielded and how they will continue to receive healthcare and support.

Work is underway with the transplant community to support clinicians’ understanding of the COVID-19 pandemic in transplant recipients. Research is looking at links to specific anti-rejection medication, comorbidity and other factors that predict hospitalisation and subsequent patient outcomes. International collaboration is well established to share experience and learning about the impact of COVID-19 on transplanted patients.