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 assess the cost-effectiveness of his Department's preventive healthcare strategies; and whether his Department has conducted research on the (a) cost-effectiveness and (b) impact on public health outcomes of preventive healthcare interventions.

The Department assesses the cost-effectiveness of prevention measures through a rigorous and evidence-based approach. The Department publishes impact assessments for policy proposals applying the methodology outlined in the Green Book, which provides guidance on appraising Government policy, programmes and projects. The Green Book is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-green-book-appraisal-and-evaluation-in-central-governent/the-green-book-2020

There is a wide range of published research and evidence on preventative healthcare interventions, which informs both the development of policy and advice issued to health services including by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence. In 2017, Public Health England published the Health Economics Evidence Resource which summarized the evidence on the cost-effectiveness of various prevention interventions used by local authorities. The Health Economics Evidence Resource is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/health-economics-evidence-resource