Asked by: Lord Bird (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to halve the gap in healthy life expectancy between the richest and poorest regions in England.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The United Kingdom faces significant health inequalities, with healthy life expectancy varying widely across and between communities. To tackle the gap in healthy life expectancy, health inequalities will be a golden thread running through work across the Department and across the Government, with addressing health inequalities embedded in all policies.
The Government is driving its health inequalities strategy through its missions, and in particular, the Health Mission. Our Health Mission, in England, as set out in the recently published 10-Year Health Plan, is focusing on addressing the social determinants of health, in a strategic way, with the goal of halving the gap in healthy life expectancy between the richest and poorest regions.
This includes a long-term vision to reform the National Health Service and make it fit for the future, to ensure that the NHS is there for anyone who needs it, whenever they need it. By tackling the underlying drivers of ill-health, the Government will take a united, mission-led approach to addressing inequalities.
We will distribute NHS funding more equally locally, so that it is better aligned with local health needs. We recognise the additional complexity of delivering care in communities with high levels of ill health and understand the importance of ensuring funding for core services is distributed equitably between practices across the country.
We will also establish a neighbourhood health centre in every community, beginning with places where healthy life expectancy is lowest. Neighbourhood health centres will co-locate NHS, local authority, and voluntary sector services, to help create an offer that meets population needs holistically.
Asked by: Lord Bird (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have plans for the expansion of Marmot Places throughout the United Kingdom.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to addressing the United Kingdom’s stark health inequalities by tackling the social determinants of health, which includes halving the gap in healthy life expectancy between the richest and poorest regions in England.
We therefore welcome the ongoing initiative shown by local areas towards this end, including by those seeking designation as Marmot Places, with support from the Institute of Health Equity. However, this is a matter for local decision making and collaboration between the relevant partner agencies.
Arrangements in relation to support for Marmot Places in the rest of the UK are a matter for the respective devolved administrations.
Asked by: Lord Bird (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether perinatal mental illnesses are being adequately identified and treated; whether they have made any assessment of the links between (1) perinatal mental illness and emotional and behavioural problems in children, and (2) perinatal mental illness and intergenerational cycles of poverty; whether, as a result of any such assessment, they intend to take steps to tackle any under-identification of perinatal mental illness; and if so, what steps.
Answered by Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford
Perinatal mental illness covers a wide range of conditions. Although the Government has made no formal assessment of the links between perinatal mental health and intergenerational poverty, we stated in the Five Year Forward View for Mental Health that if left untreated, it can have significant and long-lasting effects not only on the woman but also on the emotional, social and cognitive development of children.
The Government is committed to improving both the detection and treatment of perinatal mental illness. General practitioners and primary care teams have a crucial role in supporting the identification and treatment of perinatal mental illness, including post-natal depression, and are part of an integrated pathway of services. Support includes monitoring early onset conditions, providing pre-conception counselling and referring women to specialist mental health services, including Improving Access to Psychological Therapies services and specialist perinatal community teams, if necessary.
To date, NHS England and Health Education England has also funded training for over 3,000 staff and professionals in mental health, maternity services and primary care to better identify and support women with perinatal mental health needs.
We are investing £365 million from 2015/16 to 2020/21 in perinatal mental health services to ensure that by 2020/21 at least 30,000 more women each year are able to access evidence-based specialist mental health care during the perinatal period. This investment is designed to improve access to specialist perinatal mental health services across England, resulting in better outcomes for women and their families.
In addition, the NHS Long Term Plan, includes a commitment for a further 24,000 women to be able to access specialist perinatal mental health care by 2023/24, building on the additional 30,000 women who will access these services each year by 2020/21 under pre-existing plans. Specialist care will also be available from preconception to 24 months after birth, which will provide an extra year of support.