Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help manage the (a) affordability and (b) value for money in the cost of medicines purchased by patients.
Answered by Will Quince
The Department has no role in the costs of medicines purchased in the private sector.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help support patients receiving end-of-life care.
Answered by Will Quince
As set out in the Health and Care Act 2022, it is the legal duty of integrated care boards (ICBs) to commission palliative and end of life care to meet the needs of their local population. To support commissioners to fulfil this duty, NHS England has published statutory guidance and service specifications for both adults, and children and young people, which provide guidance to ICBs on enabling high-quality commissioning of services that meet both population need and preferences.
In addition, ICBs are supported by Palliative and End of Life Care Strategic Clinical Networks which work to progress and implement sustainable commissioning models for equitable, high-quality services.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve access to (a) early diagnosis and (b) treatment for people living with pulmonary fibrosis.
Answered by Will Quince
Patients with pulmonary fibrosis are cared for by National Health Service regional specialist Interstitial Lung Disease (ILD) services, who are commissioned by NHS England. To be referred to a specialist service patients need to be identified in primary and secondary care. Early and accurate diagnosis is a priority for NHS England, and the work to improve this area of clinical care is underway, which should have an impact on reducing delayed diagnosis of pulmonary fibrosis.
NHS England is responsible for the commissioning of services for ILD and funds the cost of anti-fibrotic treatments to treat this disease. Access to these treatments has recently been expanded to patients with non-idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis following the publication of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s technology appraisal ‘Nintedanib for treating progressive fibrosing interstitial lung diseases’ in November 2021.
The Department has no plans for an awareness campaign.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase awareness of pulmonary fibrosis.
Answered by Will Quince
Patients with pulmonary fibrosis are cared for by National Health Service regional specialist Interstitial Lung Disease (ILD) services, who are commissioned by NHS England. To be referred to a specialist service patients need to be identified in primary and secondary care. Early and accurate diagnosis is a priority for NHS England, and the work to improve this area of clinical care is underway, which should have an impact on reducing delayed diagnosis of pulmonary fibrosis.
NHS England is responsible for the commissioning of services for ILD and funds the cost of anti-fibrotic treatments to treat this disease. Access to these treatments has recently been expanded to patients with non-idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis following the publication of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s technology appraisal ‘Nintedanib for treating progressive fibrosing interstitial lung diseases’ in November 2021.
The Department has no plans for an awareness campaign.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help support people living with epilepsy.
Answered by Will Quince
The majority of health services for people with epilepsy are commissioned locally by integrated care boards (ICBs). ICBs are best placed to make decisions regarding the provision of health services to their local population, including for the treatment of epilepsy, subject to local prioritisation and funding.
At a national level, there are several initiatives supporting service improvement for those with epilepsy, including NHS England’s Neuroscience Service Transformation Programme and RightCare Epilepsy Toolkit.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps his Department has taken to help support people living with autism.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
We expect integrated care boards (ICBs) to have due regard to relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines on autism when commissioning services. It is the responsibility of ICBs to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, in line with these NICE guidelines.
Additionally, each ICB must have an Executive Lead for learning disability and autism to support them to deliver care and support for autistic people in their area. NHS England has published statutory guidance on these Executive Lead roles.
On 5 April 2023, NHS England published a national framework and operational guidance for autism assessment services. These documents include guidance on the provision of post-diagnostic support delivered shortly after diagnosis. In 2023/24, £4.2 million is available to improve services for autistic children and young people, as well as pre and post diagnostic support, including the continuation of the ‘Autism in Schools’ programme.
This year, the Department is also working on updating the Statutory Guidance on Autism to support the National Health Service and local authorities to deliver improved outcomes for autistic people.
From 1 July 2022, the Health and Care Act 2022 requires Care Quality Commission registered providers to ensure their staff receive specific training on learning disability and autism appropriate to their role. We are rolling out the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism to support this. This training will help to ensure that staff have the right skills and knowledge to provide safe and compassionate care, including how to provide reasonable adjustments, for autistic people.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help support people living with borderline personality disorder.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
It is for individual integrated care boards to commission mental health services, including those for people with borderline personality disorder, to meet the needs of their local population.
We are investing at least £2.3 billion of extra funding a year in expanding and transforming mental health services in England by March 2024. Through the NHS Long Term Plan, we are investing almost £1 billion of this extra funding in integrated community mental health support for people with serious mental illnesses. This will give an additional 370,000 adults and older adults greater choice and control over their care.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to increase the efficiency of accessing ADHD diagnosis.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the Rt hon. Member for Leeds Central on 5 April 2023 to Question 175511.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that children with suspected allergies receive a diagnosis.
Answered by Will Quince
To support healthcare professionals in ensuring that children with suspected allergies receive a diagnosis, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has published a range of evidence-based best practice guidance for clinicians and commissioners. These include guidance on the diagnosis and treatment of drug and food allergy in under-19s [CG116]; the diagnosis and management of atopic eczema in the under-12s [CG57]; and diagnosing, monitoring, and managing asthma in adults, young people and children [NG80].
NICE guidelines represent best practice, and health professionals, including general practitioners, are expected to take them fully into account. It should be noted, however, that the guidelines are not mandatory and do not replace the judgement of clinicians in determining the most appropriate treatment for individual patients.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps the Government is taking to support people who have been diagnosed with leukaemia.
Answered by Will Quince
The Department has taken steps to ensure that the National Health Service prioritises cancer treatment, including leukaemia. The NHS Long Term Plan states that, where appropriate, every person diagnosed with cancer will have access to personalised care, including needs assessment, a care plan and health and wellbeing information and support. This includes provision of end of treatment summaries, empowering people to manage their care and the impact of their cancer. To support delivery of our cancer care priorities, including expanding treatment capacity across NHS hospital trusts, NHS England is providing over £390 million in cancer service development funding to Cancer Alliances.
More treatment is happening, with over 335,000 people receiving their first cancer treatment in the 12 months leading up to June 2023, representing an increase of more than 22,000 on the same period pre-pandemic. More information on cancer waiting times is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/cancer-waiting-times/
We are committed to ensuring that all cancer patients get access to interventions, ensuring care is focused on what matters most to each person.