Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government what are the process and criteria for triggering an economic impact assessment of a new disease in the Department of Health and Social Care; and whether they are undertaking an assessment of the suitability of that process and criteria against long Covid, as a condition that did not exist five years ago.

The Government understands the scale of the challenge presented by long COVID, which is also felt on employment and the economy.

NHS England established over 100 long COVID services for adults, and for children and young people. These assess people with long COVID and direct them into appropriate care pathways which provide appropriate support and treatment.

The Government has also invested over £57 million into long COVID research. The projects aim to improve our understanding of the diagnosis and underlying mechanisms of the disease and the effectiveness of both pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapies and interventions, and to evaluate clinical care.

The Department regularly reviews evidence on the health and economic impact of diseases and conditions. Where appropriate, this evidence is used to produce impact assessments which inform the development of new policies to address the needs of the population.