Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment has he made of the adequacy of the availability of hormone replacement therapy.

There are over 70 hormone replacement therapy (HRT) products available in the United Kingdom and while most remain in good supply, a range of factors including an increase in demand has led to issues with a limited number of products. We have been working with suppliers, stakeholders and the National Health Service and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency to maintain overall supply, including expediting resupply dates of the disrupted HRT products.

Since Serious Shortage Protocols (SSPs) on specific HRT products were introduced to ensure even distribution and allow alternative products to be dispensed, supplies have now improved and recently, several SSPs have been removed. 17 SSP’s for HRT products have been issued since April 2022, and currently seven remain in place as the supply position of several products affected by short term supply issues, have resolved.