Written questions by Obese-Jecty.

What steps he is taking to roll out immunotherapy for cancer treatment more widely.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body that develops evidence-based guidance on whether new medicines should be routinely funded by the National Health Service, based on an assessment of their costs and benefits. The NICE aims to publish recommendations as close as possible to the point of licensing, and the NHS in England is legally required to fund medicines recommended in a NICE appraisal, usually within three months of final guidance. NICE recommended cancer medicines are eligible for funding from the Cancer Drugs Fund from the point of a draft recommendation.The NICE has evaluated and recommended a large number of immunotherapies for the treatment of different cancers that are now routinely available to eligible NHS patients in England.

What steps he is taking to provide increased access to high-intensity focused ultrasound laser therapy for the treatment of prostate cancer.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has developed interventional procedures guidance on high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) treatment for prostate cancer and focal therapy using HIFU for localised prostate cancer. This type of guidance considers if interventional procedures are safe and work well enough for wider use in the National Health Service, and both pieces of guidance acknowledge that there is a lack of evidence on quality-of-life benefits and long-term survival.The NICE’s guidelines recommend that HIFU should not be offered to people with localised or locally advanced prostate cancer, other than in the context of controlled clinical trials comparing their use with established interventions.

How many nursing positions for the provision of care in corridors have been advertised in NHS hospitals since 4 July 2024.

The Department does not hold the information requested.

If he will take steps to ensure that there is no discrimination in NHS IVF treatment.

Funding decisions for health services in England are made by integrated care boards and are based on the clinical needs of their local population. Organisations are expected to commission fertility services in line with National Institute for Health and C...

Whether he has written to NHS Trusts on the use of sex-specific language in NHS guidance.

The Department has not written to the National Health Service trusts on the use of sex-specific language in NHS guidance. The Government understands the need for health information to be as clear as possible and to use language that appropriately reflects...

What (a) his and (b) NHS policy is on the use of (i) BAME and (ii) BME (A) in public policy on health and (B) generally.

The Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities recommended in March 2021 that the Government stop using the term BAME, which stands for Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic. Since then, where possible, the Department has referred to ethnic minority groups ind...

What recent progress the Government has made on implementing the recommendations of the report by Dr Hilary Cass entitled Independent review of gender identity services for children and young peopl

The Government and NHS England are fully committed to implementing the recommendations of the Cass Review. My Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care updated the House on the progress to implement the Cass Review on 11 December.I...

What steps he is taking to reduce suicide levels amongst men.

We have committed to tackling suicide, as one the biggest killers in this country. As part of this, the 8,500 new mental health staff we will recruit will be specially trained to support people at risk, to reduce the lives lost to suicide.The Suicide Prev...

How many taskings for Military Aid to the Civil Authorities from his Department required the use of RAF CH-47 Chinook helicopters since 2019.

The Department does not hold information on the number or type of military assets used to fulfil a Military Aid to Civil Authorities request. It is the responsibility of the Ministry of Defence to determine the appropriate military assets, and therefore t...

Pursuant to the Answer of 20 November 2024 to Question 901341 on Drugs: Safety, what the outcome was of the recent ministerial roundtable.

Following this roundtable, the Government is developing its strategy to support a move away from the use of animals, in favour of suitable alternative methods, in both basic scientific research and in the development of products, and also in the regulator...

If he will make an assessment of the potential merits of establishing mobile dental services in (a) Cambridgeshire and (b) Peterborough.

We are clear that Faster, simpler and fairer: our plan to recover and reform NHS dentistry, also known as the Dentistry Recovery Plan, published on 7 February 2024, did not go far enough to improve access for dentistry patients in the National Health Serv...

How many tonnes of medical waste are incinerated annually by the NHS in the East of England.

The information is not collected in the format requested. However, the National Health Service collects data for all of England in the Estates Returns Information Collection, which is available at the following link:https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-informa...

What plans he has for spending on mental health support in schools; and if he will provide a breakdown of projected spending by (a) local authority area and (b) spending type.

The Department is working across the Government to deliver our commitment of a specialist mental health professional in every school. We need to ensure any support meets the needs of young people, teachers, parents, and carers which is why we are explorin...

If he will make an assessment of the potential merits of prioritising the rebuilding of Hinchingbrooke Hospital.

We must reset the New Hospital Programme to put it on a sustainable footing, however we are clear that replacing hospitals built wholly or mostly with reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete, including Hinchingbrooke Hospital, is the priority.We are undert...

What guidance his Department issues on the incineration of medical waste in the East of England.

The Department does not currently hold this information. However, the national guidance for the National Health Service’s clinical waste strategy is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/nhs-clinical-waste-strategy/Organisat...

What percentage of medical waste incineration capacity is underutilised in the East of England.

We do not hold the information in the format requested.

If he will review the (a) drug prices, (b) appliance prices, (c) fees paid to pharmacy contractors and (d) allowances paid to pharmacy contractors in the drug tariff.

Pharmacy First was launched on 31 January 2024. This service uses Patient Group Directions to enable pharmacists to supply certain prescription-only medication, where appropriate, based on specific eligibility criteria, and in line with best practice. Patients should be referred to a prescriber, such as a general practitioner, for treatment, if they meet one of the exclusion criteria.Any pharmacist prescribing services will build on Pharmacy First and will be delivered by pharmacists that have undertaken additional training to become independent prescribers. This will enable them to provide support and prescribe medication for a wider range of conditions and cohorts of patients. NHS England is working with all integrated care boards to pilot how prescribing can work in community pharmacy.The consultation with Community Pharmacy England on the national funding and contractual framework arrangements for 2024/25 was not concluded by the previous government, and we are looking at this as a matter of urgency.Drug Tariff payments are reviewed regularly with adjustments made on a regular basis to reimbursement prices for medicines and appliances, and fees, when appropriate.

What the remaining lifespan is for the buildings within Hinchingbrooke Hospital constructed from reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete panels.

In 2021/22, the Department and NHS England jointly commissioned a detailed structural assessment of the five hospitals built mostly using reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) to assess the condition and rebuild options, which included Hinchingbrooke Hospital. The report estimated that the remaining life of the RAAC panels across the five hospitals would generally extend until approximately 2030, following the installation of fail-safe steelwork.We are clear that hospitals built wholly or mostly with RAAC, including Hinchingbrooke Hospital, will be replaced through the New Hospital Programme as a priority. We are undertaking a full review of the programme to provide a thorough, costed, and realistic timeline for delivery, and to recognise the particular needs of the RAAC hospitals. The review will be completed this autumn, and once concluded, Parliament will be updated on the next steps for the programme.Like all National Health Service sites in England with confirmed RAAC, Hinchingbrooke Hospital is part of NHS England’s national RAAC programme, backed by £954 million since 2021/22. Hinchingbrooke Hospital has received over £39 million to deliver required mitigation, safety, and eradication works, to keep facilities safe and open in line with the current recommendations of the Institution of Structural Engineers.

What the main differences will be between the (a) existing scope of the Pharmacy First programme and (b) proposed scope of the Community Pharmacy Prescribing Service.

Pharmacy First was launched on 31 January 2024. This service uses Patient Group Directions to enable pharmacists to supply certain prescription-only medication, where appropriate, based on specific eligibility criteria, and in line with best practice. Patients should be referred to a prescriber, such as a general practitioner, for treatment, if they meet one of the exclusion criteria.Any pharmacist prescribing services will build on Pharmacy First and will be delivered by pharmacists that have undertaken additional training to become independent prescribers. This will enable them to provide support and prescribe medication for a wider range of conditions and cohorts of patients. NHS England is working with all integrated care boards to pilot how prescribing can work in community pharmacy.The consultation with Community Pharmacy England on the national funding and contractual framework arrangements for 2024/25 was not concluded by the previous government, and we are looking at this as a matter of urgency.Drug Tariff payments are reviewed regularly with adjustments made on a regular basis to reimbursement prices for medicines and appliances, and fees, when appropriate.

What progress he has made with Community Pharmacy England on the new pharmacy contract.

Pharmacy First was launched on 31 January 2024. This service uses Patient Group Directions to enable pharmacists to supply certain prescription-only medication, where appropriate, based on specific eligibility criteria, and in line with best practice. Patients should be referred to a prescriber, such as a general practitioner, for treatment, if they meet one of the exclusion criteria.Any pharmacist prescribing services will build on Pharmacy First and will be delivered by pharmacists that have undertaken additional training to become independent prescribers. This will enable them to provide support and prescribe medication for a wider range of conditions and cohorts of patients. NHS England is working with all integrated care boards to pilot how prescribing can work in community pharmacy.The consultation with Community Pharmacy England on the national funding and contractual framework arrangements for 2024/25 was not concluded by the previous government, and we are looking at this as a matter of urgency.Drug Tariff payments are reviewed regularly with adjustments made on a regular basis to reimbursement prices for medicines and appliances, and fees, when appropriate.