Asked by: Wayne David (Labour - Caerphilly)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what safeguards his Department has put in place to ensure that medical Serious Shortage Protocols do not pose risk to the well-being of patients.
Answered by Steve Brine
The Department engaged with a wide range of stakeholder representative bodies about the proposals and also conducted a written consultation. The Department received 47 responses to its written consultation including from industry, patients’, pharmacists’ and doctors’ representative bodies. The responses to the consultation were broadly supportive.
The Statutory Instrument is expected to be laid shortly and come into force before 29 March. Any serious shortage protocol would be developed with and signed off by clinicians. Only if clinicians deem it appropriate, an alternative quantity, strength, pharmaceutical form or medicine can be dispensed in line with the protocol.
A protocol is only one of the tools that can be used to manage shortages. The Department manages shortages in collaboration with manufacturers and suppliers, the National Health Service and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and will continue to do so. A protocol would only be introduced in case of a serious shortage, if it would help manage the supply situation and if clinicians think it is appropriate, taking account of the risks to and well-being of patients and after discussion with the manufacturer and/or marketing authorisation holder.
Any serious shortage would be time limited and the protocol itself would indicate the period during which it has effect.
Asked by: Wayne David (Labour - Caerphilly)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Serious Shortage Protocols for medicines are time-limited.
Answered by Steve Brine
The Department engaged with a wide range of stakeholder representative bodies about the proposals and also conducted a written consultation. The Department received 47 responses to its written consultation including from industry, patients’, pharmacists’ and doctors’ representative bodies. The responses to the consultation were broadly supportive.
The Statutory Instrument is expected to be laid shortly and come into force before 29 March. Any serious shortage protocol would be developed with and signed off by clinicians. Only if clinicians deem it appropriate, an alternative quantity, strength, pharmaceutical form or medicine can be dispensed in line with the protocol.
A protocol is only one of the tools that can be used to manage shortages. The Department manages shortages in collaboration with manufacturers and suppliers, the National Health Service and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and will continue to do so. A protocol would only be introduced in case of a serious shortage, if it would help manage the supply situation and if clinicians think it is appropriate, taking account of the risks to and well-being of patients and after discussion with the manufacturer and/or marketing authorisation holder.
Any serious shortage would be time limited and the protocol itself would indicate the period during which it has effect.
Asked by: Wayne David (Labour - Caerphilly)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the timeframe is for the introduction of Serious Shortage Protocols for medicine.
Answered by Steve Brine
The Department engaged with a wide range of stakeholder representative bodies about the proposals and also conducted a written consultation. The Department received 47 responses to its written consultation including from industry, patients’, pharmacists’ and doctors’ representative bodies. The responses to the consultation were broadly supportive.
The Statutory Instrument is expected to be laid shortly and come into force before 29 March. Any serious shortage protocol would be developed with and signed off by clinicians. Only if clinicians deem it appropriate, an alternative quantity, strength, pharmaceutical form or medicine can be dispensed in line with the protocol.
A protocol is only one of the tools that can be used to manage shortages. The Department manages shortages in collaboration with manufacturers and suppliers, the National Health Service and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and will continue to do so. A protocol would only be introduced in case of a serious shortage, if it would help manage the supply situation and if clinicians think it is appropriate, taking account of the risks to and well-being of patients and after discussion with the manufacturer and/or marketing authorisation holder.
Any serious shortage would be time limited and the protocol itself would indicate the period during which it has effect.
Asked by: Wayne David (Labour - Caerphilly)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what consultation his Department has undertaken on proposals for the introduction of Serious Shortage Protocols for medicines.
Answered by Steve Brine
The Department engaged with a wide range of stakeholder representative bodies about the proposals and also conducted a written consultation. The Department received 47 responses to its written consultation including from industry, patients’, pharmacists’ and doctors’ representative bodies. The responses to the consultation were broadly supportive.
The Statutory Instrument is expected to be laid shortly and come into force before 29 March. Any serious shortage protocol would be developed with and signed off by clinicians. Only if clinicians deem it appropriate, an alternative quantity, strength, pharmaceutical form or medicine can be dispensed in line with the protocol.
A protocol is only one of the tools that can be used to manage shortages. The Department manages shortages in collaboration with manufacturers and suppliers, the National Health Service and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and will continue to do so. A protocol would only be introduced in case of a serious shortage, if it would help manage the supply situation and if clinicians think it is appropriate, taking account of the risks to and well-being of patients and after discussion with the manufacturer and/or marketing authorisation holder.
Any serious shortage would be time limited and the protocol itself would indicate the period during which it has effect.
Asked by: Wayne David (Labour - Caerphilly)
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 effectiveness of the (a) support and (b) treatment for people detained under the Mental Health Act 1983.
Answered by Jackie Doyle-Price
The Care Quality Commission has a statutory duty to monitor how mental health providers exercise powers and discharge their duties when people are detained under the Mental Health Act 1983. It reports annually, and its most recent report Monitoring the Mental Health Act in 2016/17 was published in February 2018. The report contains a specific chapter on care, support and treatment in hospital. It is available at the following link:
www.cqc.org.uk/sites/default/files/20180227_mhareport_web.pdf
The Government has committed to reform mental health legislation. As a first step towards this, the Prime Minister asked Professor Sir Simon Wessely to chair a full and independent review of the Mental Health Act 1983. Modernising the Mental Health Act Increasing choice, reducing compulsion, the final report of the Independent Review of the Mental Health Act, was published in December. The Government will consider the report and its recommendations in detail, and will respond in due course.
Asked by: Wayne David (Labour - Caerphilly)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many penalty charge notices for (a) NHS prescriptions and (b) dental treatment have been issued by the NHS Business Services Authority to people claiming employment and support allowance in each of the last five years.
Answered by Steve Brine
The following table shows the number of penalty charge notices (PCNs) issued to people who have ticked the Income Related Employment Support Allowance (IR ESA) exemption box on the FP10 prescription and FP17 dental form and subsequently received a PCN as entitlement could not be confirmed. Checking against Department for Work and Pensions benefits became part of the prescription exemption checking process in 2017 so no data is held prior to this.
Year | Dental (IR ESA only) | Prescription (Px category H) |
January – December 2013 | 7,452 | 0 |
January – December 2014 | 33,517 | 0 |
January – December 2015 | 39,280 | 0 |
January – December 2016 | 39,381 | 0 |
January – December 2017 | 41,654 | 160,257 |
Total | 161,284 | 160,257 |
Note:
On the FP10 prescription form, exemption category H combines Income Support and IR ESA therefore we are unable to provide figures solely on IR ESA.
Asked by: Wayne David (Labour - Caerphilly)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when the Government plans to publish its response to the Report on Child Migration Programmes published by the Independence Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse on 1 March 2018.
Answered by Jackie Doyle-Price
The policy of child migration was misguided and deeply flawed.
We are carefully considering the content and recommendations in the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse report on the Child Migration Programmes, and will provide a formal response in due course.
Asked by: Wayne David (Labour - Caerphilly)
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 the implementation of guidance following the consultation, Conditions for which over the counter items should not routinely be prescribed in primary care: A consultation on guidance for CCGs achieves objective 1 of the Government’s mandate to NHS England on reducing health inequalities.
Answered by Steve Brine
NHS England has statutory requirements to improve quality, reduce inequalities, promote patient involvement and promote more integrated services, innovation, research, and education and training. The Secretary of State sets out objectives in the mandate and holds NHS England to account for both objectives and key statutory duties through the six monthly mandate assurance report, and by publishing an annual assessment of NHS England’s performance in response to its annual report. The mandate is the primary formal accountability mechanism between the Secretary of State and NHS England.
NHS England, in partnership with NHS Clinical Commissioners (the organisation that represents clinical commissioning groups (CCGs)) has recently published CCG guidance setting out recommendations on Conditions for which over the counter items should not routinely be prescribed in primary care. This guidance outlines appropriate prescribing for the 35 conditions specified.
The guidance issued is commissioning guidance for CCGs in England only, and is not a clinical guideline and as such, it does not affect a general practitioner’s ability to determine what the cause of specified symptoms are, to make a diagnosis and then to act appropriately. NHS England also published a full Equality and Health Inequalities Impact Assessment with the guidance which covers groups protected by the Equality Act 2010. A copy of the document can be accessed at the following link:
Asked by: Wayne David (Labour - Caerphilly)
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 ensure that the proposals in the consultation, Conditions for which over the counter items should not routinely be prescribed in primary care: A consultation on guidance for CCGs do not contravene the principle in the NHS constitution whereby access to NHS services is based on clinical need and not an individual’s ability to pay and NHS services are free of charge except in limited circumstances sanctioned by Parliament.
Answered by Steve Brine
NHS England, in partnership with NHS Clinical Commissioners (the organisation that represents clinical commissioning groups (CCGs)) has recently published CCG guidance setting out recommendations on conditions for which over the counter items should not routinely be prescribed in primary care. This guidance has not introduced any charges for NHS services; it does however outline appropriate prescribing for the 35 conditions specified.
The guidance issued is commissioning guidance for CCGs in England only, and is not a clinical guideline and as such, it does not affect a general practitioner’s (GP) ability to determine what the cause of specified symptoms are, to make a diagnosis and then to act appropriately. Furthermore, any such guidance does not preclude the ability of an individual to access their GP for whatever symptoms they are experiencing, to seek advice and appropriate treatment. In addition there are several exceptions within the guidance that outline specific scenarios (i.e. long term or complex conditions that require over the counter treatments, vulnerable patients, to treat side effects of other prescription only drugs) where prescribing should continue.
Asked by: Wayne David (Labour - Caerphilly)
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 the implementation of guidance following the consultation, Conditions for which over the counter items should not routinely be prescribed in primary care: A consultation on guidance for CCGs achieves objective 1 of the Government’s mandate to NHS England on reducing health inequalities.
Answered by Steve Brine
NHS England has statutory requirements to improve quality, reduce inequalities, promote patient involvement and promote more integrated services, innovation, research, and education and training. The Secretary of State sets out objectives in the mandate and holds NHS England to account for both objectives and key statutory duties through the six monthly mandate assurance report, and by publishing an annual assessment of NHS England’s performance in response to its annual report. The mandate is the primary formal accountability mechanism between the Secretary of State and NHS England.
NHS England, in partnership with NHS Clinical Commissioners (the organisation that represents clinical commissioning groups (CCGs)) has recently published CCG guidance setting out recommendations on Conditions for which over the counter items should not routinely be prescribed in primary care. This guidance outlines appropriate prescribing for the 35 conditions specified.
The guidance issued is commissioning guidance for CCGs in England only, and is not a clinical guideline and as such, it does not affect a general practitioner’s ability to determine what the cause of specified symptoms are, to make a diagnosis and then to act appropriately. NHS England also published a full Equality and Health Inequalities Impact Assessment with the guidance which covers groups protected by the Equality Act 2010. A copy of the document can be accessed at the following link: