Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress he has made on the (a) negotiations for NHS access to and (b) appraisal of Ocrelizumab as a treatment for primary progressive MS.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body responsible for developing authoritative, evidence-based guidance for the National Health Service on whether drugs and other treatments represent an effective use of NHS resources.

NICE is currently developing technology appraisal guidance on the use of ocrelizumab for treating primary progressive multiple sclerosis, with final guidance expected in June 2019. NHS England and Roche have now reached a commercial agreement and on 9 May NICE published final draft guidance which recommended ocrelizumab within its marketing authorisation, as an option for treating early primary progressive multiple sclerosis with imaging features characteristic of inflammatory activity in adults. Ocrelizumab will now be routinely available for eligible adults.