Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 6 November 2015 to Question 14029, for what reasons his Department allows the use of individual funding requests for palivizuamb without an assessment of the suitability of those requests for preventative treatments.

NHS England has advised that only patients who meet the criteria listed in the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation’s guidance, Immunisation against infectious disease, will be eligible for routine funding for palivizumab. Where a patient does not meet these criteria, and a clinician feels that a patient is clinically exceptional, an application should be made through the normal regional individual funding request process.

A letter and specialised services circular (SSC1535) has been sent to all providers and commissioners explaining the commissioning arrangements for palivizumab for the 2015 vaccination season. This is available at:

www.bnssgformulary.nhs.uk/includes/documents/SSC1535%20Commissioning%20of%20Palivizumab%20for%20the%202015%20Vaccination%20Season.pdf