Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many patients in the South West have been eligible for pre-implantation genetic testing for monogenic disorders in each of the last five years.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Pre-implantation Genetic Testing (PGT) is used to identify genetic anomalies in embryos created through in-vitro fertilisation. Over 600 genetic conditions can currently be tested for using this technique, as licensed by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority. NHS England has commissioned five centres to provide PGT to patients in England. The number of PGT cycles undertaken has increased from 223 patients in 2009 to 620 in 2019, but NHS England does not have access to data that describes the geographical profile of the people that have used the National Health Service or privately commissioned PGT services.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
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 effectiveness of the assessment process for NHS continuing healthcare funding in accurately capturing the needs of people living with dementia.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has no plans at this time to assess the efficacy of the NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC) assessment process. Eligibility for CHC is not determined by age, clinical condition, or financial means. It is assessed on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the totality of an individual’s needs, including ways in which these interact with one another. We continue to work with our partners to deliver CHC policy effectively, including NHS England, who are responsible for oversight of CHC delivery.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
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 of the adequacy of waiting times for GP surgeries in Bristol East constituency.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
In the last 12 months to December 2023, 41% of the 407,000 appointments in Bristol East were delivered on the same day they were booked, and 84.1% were delivered within two weeks of booking. NHS England publishes monthly data on General Practice Appointments, including the approximate length of time between appointments being booked and taking place, but this is not a proxy for waiting times. There are a number of factors which can influence the timing of appointments, and it is not possible to estimate the time between the patient’s first attempt to contact their surgery, and an appointment.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate she has made of the number of primary care vacancies for each of the last 12 months.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
There is no centrally held data on the number of general practice or dentist vacancies. NHS England conducts an annual community pharmacy workforce survey, that collects data on vacancy rates across community pharmacies in England. Data for the last 12 months is not currently available, but data for 2023 is being analysed, and will be published later this year on NHS England’s Health Education England website, which is available at the following link:
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 20 November 2023 to Question 1067 on Dental Services: Pregnancy, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the availability of free dental treatment for pregnant women.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
To ensure everyone has access to dentistry when needed, there are a range of exemptions to National Health Service dental patient charges for those who need the most financial support. Support is also available through the NHS Low Income Scheme for those patients who are not eligible for exemption or full remission. We have also frozen dental patient charges between December 2020 and April 2023. Free treatment is available to all pregnant women.
Patients do not routinely join NHS dental waiting lists and are only registered with a dental practice for a course of treatment. NHS dental practice profiles at NHS.UK show whether practices across England are currently accepting new patients. This information is available at the following link:
https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/find-a-dentist
NHS Dental Statistics for England, published by NHS Digital, brings together information on NHS dental activity in England, including information about courses of treatment delivered. 214,257 courses of treatment were delivered to expectant mothers in 2022/23, which is 0.7% of the total of 32.5 million courses of treatment that were delivered in the year. 47.5% of all courses of NHS dental treatment were delivered to non-paying adults and children in the same period.
The NHS in England invests £3 billion on dentistry every year. We are working on our Dentistry Recovery Plan which will address how we continue to improve access for all NHS dental patients across England, including pregnant women.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of (a) NHS treatment standards and (b) the adequacy of survival rates for people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Standards for service delivery covering both benign and malignant disease is set out in the
NHS England’s Hepato-Pancreatic Biliary (HPB) service specification.
With support and input from HPB cancer clinical experts and patient and public voice representatives, including Pancreatic Cancer UK, the service specification has recently been revised to reflect current care pathways and update references to national policy, guidance and guidelines, including guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. The revised specification is expected to be in use across the National Health Service in England by April 2024.
Although no specific assessment has currently been made on the adequacy of the survival rates for people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, the Government is committed to diagnosing 75% of stageable cancers at stage 1 & 2 by 2028. This threshold is key to improving outcomes and survival rates, including for people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to section 6 of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence's (NICE) health technology evaluations: the manual, published on 31 January 2022, whether she has had discussions with NICE on the potential impact of the severity modifier on technology appraisals for (a) cystic fibrosis and (b) other rare diseases.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Departmental officials regularly discuss a range of issues with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), including in relation to the application of the severity modifier that was introduced in 2022. NICE is responsible for determining whether a severity weighting should apply to the evaluation of individual medicines in line with its published methods and processes. NICE has recently published draft guidance for consultation on the use of Orkambi, Symkevi and Kaftrio for the treatment of cystic fibrosis and stakeholders now have an opportunity to comment on NICE’s recommendations. NICE continues to work with stakeholders to address the issues highlighted by the committee in the draft guidance.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Prime Minister's Answer of 15 November 2023 to Question 900077, Official Report, column 645, how her Department plans to facilitate discussions between key stakeholders in the NICE process of appraisal of treatments for people with cystic fibrosis.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is an independent body and is responsible for leading engagement with interested parties in the development of its recommendations on medicines. NICE has recently published draft guidance for consultation on the use of Orkambi, Symkevi and Kaftrio for the treatment of cystic fibrosis and stakeholders now have an opportunity to comment on NICE’s recommendations. NICE continues to work with stakeholders to address the issues highlighted by the committee in the draft guidance. The Department has no plans to facilitate discussions and encourages the company to continue to engage in the NICE appraisal process.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of financial support for medical research into post-viral conditions.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department funds research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). In recent years, the NIHR has made major strategic investments in long COVID and myalgic encephalomyelitis (also known as chronic fatigue syndrome) and is exploring additional research in these areas. No specific assessment has been made of the adequacy of financial support for medical research into post-viral conditions as a whole.
The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including post-viral conditions. These applications are subject to peer review and judged through open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality. In all disease areas, the amount of NIHR funding depends on the volume and quality of scientific activity.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that pregnant dental patients can access free NHS dentistry appointments.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
There are a range of exemptions to National Health Service dental patient charges, including for women who are pregnant or have had a baby in the previous 12 months. Further information is available at the following link: https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/dentists/dental-costs/get-help-with-dental-costs/