Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether his Department plans to amend the Health and Social Care Act 2012 to provide clearer guidance on the provision of HIV support services by local authorities, clinical commissioning groups and NHS England.

Local authorities have for many years been responsible for HIV social care services and no changes were made to these arrangements by the Health and Social Care Act 2012. Funding of HIV social care services also sits outside the public health ring-fenced grant.

The British HIV Association, working in partnership with care providers, professional associations, commissioners and people living with HIV, produced in 2013, a set of quality standards for the care of people with HIV in the United Kingdom which are available at:

http://www.bhiva.org/standards-of-care-2013.aspx

The standards cover 12 key themes, prioritised as being the most important issues for the care of people with HIV. Derived from the best available evidence, the standards focus on aspects of care that have particular relevance for delivering equitable high-quality services that secure the best possible outcomes for people with HIV.