Asked by: Jane Stevenson (Conservative - Wolverhampton North East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with representatives of the social care sector on testing requirements for visitors to care homes after the ending of free covid-19 tests on 1 April 2022; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Gillian Keegan
The Department has regular meetings with stakeholders and senior sector representatives to discuss a range of issues related to adult social care, including visitor testing. The testing regimes for adult social care after 1 April 2022 are currently under review. Further details will be provided shortly.
Asked by: Jane Stevenson (Conservative - Wolverhampton North East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to ease covid-19 visiting restrictions in NHS hospitals over the Christmas and New Year period.
Answered by Edward Argar
We recognise the importance of being able to visit family, friends and loved ones in hospital, including over the Christmas and New Year period. Since the end of the national restrictions, hospital visiting is subject to local discretion by trusts and other National Health Service bodies, taking into account the local prevalence of COVID-19 and the health, safety and wellbeing of patients, communities and staff.
Asked by: Jane Stevenson (Conservative - Wolverhampton North 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 all NHS trusts provide three full cycles of IVF for women under 40, as recommended by NICE guidelines.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
The Government expects clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) to commission fertility services in line with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s (NICE) guidelines, to ensure equitable access across England. We are aware that some individual CCGs set additional non-clinical criteria outside NICE’s fertility guidelines. We have undertaken an internal review of this issue and are currently considering options to address these variations.
Asked by: Jane Stevenson (Conservative - Wolverhampton North East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress he has made on providing a 24-hour vaccination service; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust and Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust have been piloting a 24 hours a day, seven days a week vaccination service since 20 January 2021. An evaluation of the King's Mill Hospital pilot in Nottinghamshire has shown positive feedback on the service. Data from the Birmingham site is awaited. NHS England will consider the findings from both pilots before deciding on next steps.
Asked by: Jane Stevenson (Conservative - Wolverhampton North East)
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 effect of face coverings on the level of transmission of covid-19; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Jo Churchill
In June 2020, Public Health England (PHE) completed a rapid review of the evidence related to face coverings in the community and COVID-19 and concluded that “the beneficial effects of wearing masks may be increased when combined with other non-pharmaceutical interventions, such as hand washing and social distancing.” A second review, published in January 2021, found evidence consistent with the findings of the first review, that the use of face coverings in the community helped reduce the spread of COVID-19. Therefore, PHE continue to advocate the same measures of wearing face coverings in specified community settings, alongside social distancing and good hand hygiene. We keep our face covering policy under review, guided by the advice of our scientific and medical experts.
Asked by: Jane Stevenson (Conservative - Wolverhampton North 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 roll out covid-19 vaccines to people who are not registered with a GP.
Answered by Nadhim Zahawi
NHS England and NHS Improvement have sought to ensure that vaccinations are accessible to those who are not registered with a general practitioner (GP). NHS England and NHS Improvement commissioned the general practice COVID-19 vaccination service as an enhanced service (ES). The ES enables practices to vaccinate unregistered patients provided they are eligible for a vaccination. Individuals who are not registered with a GP practice will therefore be able to access the vaccine in line with the priority groups outlined by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisations.
National Health Service regional teams working with appropriate local systems will reach out to unregistered people to ensure they are offered the vaccine. In the immediate period we are asking partners including voluntary community, social enterprise, and inclusion health provider partners to support their clients and service users to register with a GP.