Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many families are awaiting a decision for continuing healthcare funding where it is claimed that the application applies to an unassessed period of care; and if he will make a statement.

The Department does not routinely collect data regarding the number of applications for NHS Continuing Healthcare assessments.

However, following the introduction on 15 March 2012, of deadlines for requests for assessments of eligibility for NHS Continuing Healthcare for previously unassessed periods of care which occurred during the time 1 April 2004 to 31 March 2012, the Department is aware that there were approximately 60,000 enquiries received by primary care trusts.