Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Highgate)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much his Department plans to spend on biomedical research into the (a) causes, (b) consequences and (c) treatment of Myalgic encephalomyelitis in 2022-23.
Answered by Will Quince
The Department funds research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR has provided approximately £4.4 million for research on myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) since 2011. In addition, the NIHR and the Medical Research Council have jointly funded a £3.2 million study into genetics and ME/CFS. The study will analyse samples from 25,000 people with ME/CFS to search for genetic differences which may indicate underlying causes or an increased risk of developing the condition.
Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Highgate)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to (a) include asthma in the medical exemptions list for NHS prescription charges, (b) backdate all prescription prepayment certificates to 12 months and (c) reduce all prescriptions costs.
Answered by Neil O'Brien - Shadow Minister (Policy Renewal and Development)
There are no current plans to do so. Approximately 89% of prescription items are dispensed free of charge and there are a range of exemptions in place, which those with asthma may be eligible for and be in receipt of free prescriptions.
The cost of prescriptions can be limited by purchasing a prescription pre-payment certificate, which can be paid for in instalments, to receive all required medicines for just over £2 a week. Additionally, the NHS Low Income Scheme can also assist with health costs on an income-related basis. In 2022/23, prescription charges have been frozen for the single prescription charge and the prescription pre-payment certificate.
Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Highgate)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has taken recent steps to provide support to the DEBRA charity.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
The National Institute for Health and Care Research has supported the delivery of 12 studies funded by DEBRA in the last five years.
Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Highgate)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment her Department has made of the impact of the Better Care Fund on the provision of support to unpaid carers; and whether she plans to take further steps to improve the working conditions of unpaid carers.
Answered by Helen Whately - Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
In 2022-23, £291.7 million of the Better Care Fund is earmarked to provide short breaks and respite services for carers, as well as additional advice and support. This year, for the first time, local partnerships have had to set out how funding is being used to support unpaid carers in their Better Care Fund plans. These plans are currently being assured and moderated.
We are committed to supporting unpaid carers to balance their caring alongside work, and to do so in a way that supports their own health and wellbeing. On Friday 21 October, the Government confirmed its support for the hon. Member for North East Fife’s Private Members’ Bill which would introduce a new entitlement to one week of Carer’s Leave for all employees who are providing care for a dependant with a long-term care need.
Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Highgate)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the impact of Government funding to improve access to NHS Dental Care Services; and whether his Department has plans to announce additional funding in 2022.
Answered by James Morris
No specific assessment has yet been made as data on the additional funding is not currently held centrally. We expect this information to be available shortly. There are no plans to announce additional funding for National Health Service dentistry in 2022 further to the £3 billion committed by NHS England each year.
We will shortly announce a range of measures to improve the NHS dental system to increase access, target care towards patients with higher oral care needs and reward dentists more fairly for the care they deliver. These improvements have been developed with the sector and the British Dental Association. Since July 2022, NHS England has asked practices to deliver 100% of contracted units of dental activity and 100% of units of orthodontic activity to safely improve access for patients.
Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Highgate)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department will take steps to provide financial support for patients who require respiratory support devices at home and are unable to afford these expenses.
Answered by James Morris
Specific specialised NHS England services provide rebates on energy costs for patients using medical equipment at home, such as home oxygen concentrators. However, these arrangements are unique to the contracts or service specifications.
We will continue to monitor the situation to support home users of electrical medical equipment.
Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Highgate)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to his Department’s proposed plans to improve access to NHS Dental Care Services, whether he will collect information on the number of dental patients registered with NHS practices in order to measure the progress on this matter.
Answered by James Morris
We have no such plans to do so as there is no requirement for continuous registration of National Health Service dental patients.
We are working with the sector and the British Dental Association on improvements to the NHS dental system to improve access, which will be available in due course.
Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Highgate)
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 increase the accessibility of healthy food to families who are struggling with the cost of living crisis.
Answered by Maggie Throup
The Government recently announced a new £15 billion support package to help families with the cost of living, bringing the total support for households this year to £37 billion. This includes £1.5 billion to help with the cost of household essentials, such as food. The three Healthy Food Schemes, Healthy Start, the Nursery Milk Scheme and the School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme provide nutritional assistance to more than three million children.
Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Highgate)
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 encourage children and young people to adopt a healthy lifestyle and diet.
Answered by Maggie Throup
The Office for Health Improvement and Disparities’ Better Health Start for Life campaign encourages and supports parents-to-be and families with babies and young children to develop parenting skills and healthy habits in the first 1,001 days. Its Better Health Families campaign also aims to help families with children aged four to 11 years old in England to eat a healthier diet and encourages physical activity. These campaigns are supported by apps and resources to motivate and encourage behaviour change.
Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Highgate)
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 help improve the mental wellbeing of people with learning disabilities who experienced isolation during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Gillian Keegan
We have commissioned the University of Warwick and Manchester Metropolitan University to undertake a study into the impact of the pandemic on people with learning disabilities. This study monitored the experiences of people with a learning disability throughout the pandemic, to improve our understanding of the impact on the wellbeing and lives of people with a learning disability.
In addition to the expansion of National Health Service mental health services through the NHS Long Term Plan, the Government provided more than £34 million to organisations supporting those experiencing loneliness during the pandemic. The Government also updated the ‘Let’s Talk Loneliness’ campaign and established a new Tackling Loneliness Network of private, public and charity sector organisations.