Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool, Walton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she plans to take steps to implement recommendations in the report by the APPG on Hormone Pregnancy Test entitled Bitter Pill: Primodos - the forgotten thalidomide, published on 27 February 2024.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
We remain hugely sympathetic to the families who believe that they have suffered because of using Hormone Pregnancy Tests (HPTs). In 2017 an independent Expert Working Group (EWG) conducted a comprehensive review of the available scientific evidence and concluded that the data did not support a causal association between the use of HPTs, such as Primodos, and adverse pregnancy outcomes. This remains the Government’s position. The Government has committed to reviewing any new evidence related to HPTs and a possible causal association with adverse pregnancy outcomes.
On the recently published recommendations of the HPT All-Party Parliamentary Group, we have no plans to set up an independent review to examine the findings of the EWG. In the interests of transparency, all evidence collected and papers considered by the EWG were published in 2018, along with full minutes of its discussions. Details of conflicts of interests and how these were managed were also published. The Government is reviewing Professor Danielsson’s publication to consider if it presents any new evidence or analyses not already considered by the EWG on HPTs, and will be seeking independent expert advice from the Commission on Human Medicines in due course.
Asked by: Jeff Smith (Labour - Manchester, Withington)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she has made an assessment of the potential implications for her Department’s policies of the report by the APPG on Hormone Pregnancy Test entitled Bitter Pill: Primodos - the forgotten thalidomide, published on 27 February 2024.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
We remain hugely sympathetic to the families who believe that they have suffered due to the use of Hormone Pregnancy Tests (HPTs). In 2017 an independent Expert Working Group conducted a comprehensive review of the available scientific evidence, and concluded that the data did not support a causal association between the use of HPTs, such as Primodos, and adverse pregnancy outcomes. This remains the Government’s position. The Government has committed to reviewing any new evidence related to HPTs, and a possible causal association with adverse pregnancy outcomes.
Asked by: Jeff Smith (Labour - Manchester, Withington)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will implement the recommendations in the report by the APPG on Hormone Pregnancy Test entitled Bitter Pill: Primodos - the forgotten thalidomide, published on 27 February 2024.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
We remain hugely sympathetic to the families who believe that they have suffered due to the use of Hormone Pregnancy Tests (HPTs). In 2017 an independent Expert Working Group conducted a comprehensive review of the available scientific evidence, and concluded that the data did not support a causal association between the use of HPTs, such as Primodos, and adverse pregnancy outcomes. This remains the Government’s position. The Government has committed to reviewing any new evidence related to HPTs, and a possible causal association with adverse pregnancy outcomes.
Asked by: Gavin Williamson (Conservative - South Staffordshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to take steps to secure financial redress for the victims of Primodos.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Government published its response to the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety (IMMDS) review in July 2021, which did not accept the recommendation to establish separate redress schemes for the three interventions covered by the review. This included a redress scheme for those harmed by Primodos.
Our priority is to make medicines and devices safer, and the Government is pursuing a wide range of activity to further this aim. The 2021 response, and the Government’s December 2022 update to the response, explains the changes that have been put in place since the IMMDS Review report’s publication, and the further action the Government will take to implement the recommendations accepted and to improve patient safety.
In the recent House of Commons debate of 7 September 2023 on hormone pregnancy tests, I committed to review the outstanding recommendations in relation to Primodos.
Asked by: Tony Lloyd (Labour - Rochdale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to publish the findings of the Expert Working Group review on Hormone Pregnancy Tests.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The ‘Report of the Commission on Human Medicines’ Expert Working Group on Hormone Pregnancy Tests’ was published on 15 November 2017 and is available at the following link:
Asked by: Tony Lloyd (Labour - Rochdale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent reassessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the recommendations in the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review for victims of hormone pregnancy tests.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Government published its response to the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety review in July 2021. We will provide an update on progress on implementing the response in due course.
Asked by: Tony Lloyd (Labour - Rochdale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of providing redress for victims of Hormone Pregnancy Tests.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Government’s response to the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review did not accept the recommendation relating to redress, including for hormone pregnancy tests. We are prioritising improving the future safety of medicines and medical devices through high standards for industry to market and manufacture products.
Asked by: Ed Davey (Liberal Democrat - Kingston and Surbiton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment she has made the potential merits of providing redress for victims of Hormone Pregnancy Tests.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Government’s response to the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety review did not accept the recommendation relating to redress for the three interventions addressed, including hormone pregnancy tests.
We are prioritising improvements in the safety of medicines and medical devices and high standards for industry to market and manufacture products to reduce harm in the future.
Asked by: Ed Davey (Liberal Democrat - Kingston and Surbiton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent reassessment she has made of the implications for her policy of the recommendations in the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review for victims of hormone pregnancy tests.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
We will publish an update on progress to implement the Government’s response in due course.
Asked by: Ed Davey (Liberal Democrat - Kingston and Surbiton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she will reassess the findings of the Expert Working Group review on Hormone Pregnancy Tests.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
We have no plans to do so.