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Disability Working Allowance
Ms Lynne : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many applications there have been in the last six months in each of the English health authority regions for a disability working allowance.
Mr. Scott : Information about disability working allowance is not available in the form requested. Nationally, between 1 December 1993 and 31 May 1994 there were 6,045 applications.
Social Fund
Mr. Tipping : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many claims for assistance from the social fund at the east Nottinghamshire, north Nottinghamshire and west Nottinghamshire benefits offices were made in the last year for which figures are available ; how many were accepted and how many were refused.
Mr. Scott : The administration of the social fund is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member.
Letter from Michael Bichard to Mr. Paddy Tipping, dated 17 June 1994 :
The Secretary of State for Social Security has asked me to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the number of applications to the Social Fund in the Benefits Agency's East, North and West Nottinghamshire Districts.
You asked for details of how many of these applications were successful and how many were refused. Those details are shown at Appendix A. Please note that Cold Weather Payments, which are paid without claims being made, are not included in the figures provided. I hope you find this reply helpful.
J Appendix A 1993-94 |Applications|Awards |Refusals -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Nottinghamshire East |22,875 |12,436 |9,583 Nottinghamshire North |20,139 |10,380 |8,425 Nottinghamshire West |26,246 |15,170 |10,301 The above application figures include the following: Applications awaiting determination. Applications withdrawn before determination. Budgeting and crisis loan offers which are not accepted.
Tamara Norashkaryan
Mr. Madden : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when Tamara Norashkaryan, a visitor to the United Kingdom applied to his Department for assistance ; what assistance she was given ; from what date such financial assistance was provided ; if Ms Norashkaryan submitted a standard acknowledgement letter with her application or after submitting any application ; what was the total amount of financial assistance given by his Department to Ms Norashkaryan ; what advice was given to her to apply to any local authority or other public agency for assistance ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Burt : The administration of income support is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member with such information as is available. Letter from Michael Bichard to Mr. Max Madden, dated 17 June 1994 :
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The Secretary of State for Social Security has asked me to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking specific details about Ms Tamara Norashkaryan and her application to the Department for financial assistance.As you are already aware Ms Norashkaryan is currently visiting the United Kingdom. I can confirm that she has made a claim for financial assistance by way of income support and that a decision has been made on her claim. However due to the confidential nature of this case I have written to you separately and in greater detail about this matter.
I hope you find this reply helpful.
HEALTH
HIV/AIDS
Mr. Alfred Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people over the next 10 years are expected to develop (a) HIV, (b) AIDS and (c) AIDS dementia.
Mr. Sackville : Projections of the incidence and prevalence of AIDS cases and other severe HIV disease in England and Wales have been made by a working group chaired by Professor N. E. Day. "Communicable Disease Report" 1993 ; 3 (Supplement 1) : S1-17, copies of which are available in the Library.
Treatment Abroad
Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information is held by her Department on the number of NHS patients who have been sent abroad for surgical treatment from (a) GP fundholding practices and (b) GP non-fundholding practices.
Dr. Mawhinney : General practitioners cannot authorise such treatment.
Vehicle Emissions
Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what risk assessment she has commissioned on the link between benzene exhaust emissions from motor vehicles and human health.
Mr. Sackville : The Committees on Carcinogenicity--COC--and on Medical Effects of Air Pollutants--COMEAP--have considered hazards to health from inhalation of benzene, which is a component of exhaust emissions from motor vehicles and of vapour fumes from petrol. Benzine is toxic at high doses and is classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer as a human carcinogen. Long-term occupational exposure to benzene at concentrations a thousand times greater than those typically found in urban air in the United Kingdom has been shown to increase the risk of certain types of leukaemia in adults ; its use in industry is therefore strictly controlled. Although it is not possible to define an absolute safe level of exposure to benzene, levels in outdoor air encountered in the United Kingdom are considered by the COC and the COMEAP to present very low risk to health.
Psychological Testing
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the NHS Executive, the Department of Health, NHS Trusts, NHS regions, district health authorities and
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family health services authorities expend each year in employing (a) outside employment agencies and (b) employment agencies which conduct psychological testing.Mr. Sackville : During 1993-94 the Department of Health, including its agencies and the National Health Service Executive spent the following amounts on recruitment exercises conducted by outside recruitment agencies, including Recruitment and Assessment Services, an executive agency of the Cabinet Office.
|Recruitment without|Recruitment with
|psychological test |psychological test
|£ |£
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DH (excluding agencies and
the NHS Executive) |173,708 |16,244
NHS Executive |54,902 |14,805
Agencies
NHS Pensions Agency |20,566 |-
NHS Estates |- |36,191
Medicines Control Agency |43,041 |-
|---- |---
Total |292,217 |67,240
Figures for NHS trusts, NHS regions, district health authorities and family health
services authorities are not available centrally. NHS employers are autonomous and
make their own arrangements.
Distinction Awards
Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much money has been paid by her Department as merit awards to medical consultants in each of the last 10 years.
Dr. Mawhinney : This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will place in the Library a list of the names of the medical consultants who currently hold merit awards ; and if she will indicate the grade that each has been awarded.
Dr. Mawhinney : Information about the awards status of individual consultants is confidential.
Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many consultants in oral health have been awarded merit awards in the last 10 years.
Dr. Mawhinney : A total of 296 distinction awards were granted to dental consultants in England in the years 1984 to 1993 inclusive.
Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will place in the Library a copy of the first annual report of the advisory committee on the distribution of awards.
Dr. Mawhinney : This was done following publication in April 1994.
Access to Treatment
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is her policy towards the application of the principle of equitable access to NHS services on the basis of need and its implementation in relation to the provision of hospital services to patients of fundholding and non- fundholding general practices.
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Dr. Mawhinney : Hospitals may not offer contracts to one purchaser which could disadvantage the patients of another. However, local waiting times for non-urgent treatment may vary according to clinical need and the priorities of different purchasers.
Emergency patients are always treated immediately, and urgent cases treated within locally agreed time scales.
Information Budgets
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will set out the budgets and projected budgets for her Department's information department from 1986 to 1996.
Mr. Sackville : Expenditure and budget figures for the Department's Information Division which now includes the recently established public inquiry office and the rationalisation of the Department's printing services are shown in the table.
Year |Publicity |Manpower and
|£ million |running costs
|£ million
------------------------------------------------------------
1986-87 |12.627 |-
1987-88 |12.381 |-
1988-89 |10.799 |-
1989-90 |17.248 |0.890
1990-91 |21.008 |1.250
1991-92 |24.471 |1.491
1992-93 |20.710 |1.749
1993-94 |<1>19.405 |1.897
1994-95 (budgets) |23.067 |2.247
<1> Estimated.
Information on manpower and running costs for the years
1986-87 to 1988-89 are not available in the form
requested.
Budgets for 1995-96 have yet to be decided.
Serious Incidents
Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list all circulars issued by her Department since 1985 on the investigation of serious untoward incidents affecting patients ; and if she will place a copy of each of those circulars in the Library.
Mr. Sackville : Hospitals were reminded of their responsibility to report adverse incidents involving medical devices in health circular HC(88)51 published in June 1988. This was updated by HSG(93)13 published in June 1993. Copies of these documents will be placed in the Library.
Merit Awards Committees
Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will place in the Library a list of the members of the regional merit awards committee for each region in England.
Dr. Mawhinney : A list of the members of the Regional C Awards Committee and Higher Awards Committee for each region in England will be placed in the Library.
Sports Injuries
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what provisions apply to the charging by NHS hospitals for treatment for sports injuries.
Mr. Sackville : None. National health service treatment is free of charge unless there is a specific statutory power to charge.
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European Union Health Expenditure
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what are the latest available per capita spending figures on the health services for each member state of the European Union.
Mr. Sackville : The national health service will be spending an estimated £674 for every man, woman and child in the United Kingdom in 1994-95. Figures for other member states of the European Union are not available on a comparable basis.
Discrimination
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list the publications of her Department on discrimination in the NHS since 1979.
Dr. Mawhinney : The information requested from 1983 onwards is available in the Library. A comprehensive list of publications before 1983 is not available centrally.
Central Heating
Mr. Gapes : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research the Department of Health has commissioned on the links between lack of central heating and long-term limiting illness and disability.
Mr. Bowis : We are not aware of the existence of any such research.
Student Grants
Dr. Lynne Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will review the regulations governing the provision of help with national health service charges so that students are assessed solely on the basis of the student grant they actually receive and not on the assumption that they take up a student loan.
Medical Negligence Cases
Mr. Etherington : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if she will list, by each district health authority in England and Wales, the average value of negligence cases brought by patients successfully concluded in each year since 1985 ;
(2) if she will list, by each district health authority in England and Wales, the total number of successful negligence cases brought by patients against the district health authorities for each year since 1985, indicating the number resolved incorporating secrecy clauses.
Dr. Mawhinney : I refer the hon. Member to the replies I gave the hon. Member for Darlington (Mr. Milburn) on 14 March at columns 537-38 and on 10 May at columns 84-85 . Information relating to Wales is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales.
Dentistry
Mr. Gareth Wardell : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will publish the Government's response to the Bloomfield report on dentistry before the end of June.
Dr. Mawhinney : The Government's response to Sir Kenneth Bloomfield's report will be published in due course.
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NHS Trusts
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list those national health service trusts that did not reach their target of 6 per cent. return on capital for (a) 1991-92, (b) 1992-93 and (c) 1993- 94.
Mr. Sackville : I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave the hon. Member for Darlington (Mr. Milburn) on 20 April at column 541 .
Adrenalin Supplies
Sir Cranley Onslow : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps she is taking to ensure that adequate supplies of adrenalin injections suitable for the immediate treatment of anaphylactic reaction are generally available ; and what discussions her Department has had with the Medicines Control Agency on this subject.
Mr. Sackville : Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Medicines Control Agency under its chief executive, Dr. K. H. Jones. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given. Letter from Dr. K. H. Jones to Sir Cranley Onslow, dated 17 June 1994 :
Adrenaline Injections for the treatment of Anaphylactic Reactions
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question concerning supplies of Adrenaline injections suitable for the immediate treatment of anaphylactic reactions and their availability.
The Medicines Control Agency is an Executive Agency of the Department of Health responsible for safeguarding public health by licensing medicines, monitoring adverse drug reactions, surveillance of marketed drugs and publication of standards. The Agency carries out the day to day activities of the Licensing Authority which comprises Ministers. The Chief Executive reports to the Secretary of State for Health, and the Agency remains in frequent and regular contact with the Department.
Adrenaline Injection in a preloaded syringe (Min-I-Jet) was granted a product licence for the treatment of anaphylactic reactions after assessment for safety, quality and efficacy. The manufacturer however recently experienced production difficulties resulting in shortages of supply during April and May 1994. Further and adequate supplies of the Min- I-Jet became available during the week commencing 6 June 1994.
It is a principle of UK Medicines Control that doctors have clinical freedom to prescribe unlicensed medicinal products and Section 13(1) of the Medicines Act grants an exemption allowing very limited quantities of imports of such products. This is allowed without reference to MCA and it is on this basis that an unlicensed Adrenaline Injection in a self- injecting syringe (Epipen) has been imported from the United States of America by or to the order of doctors in the UK for the treatment of their particular patients. This product has not been assessed by this Agency and prescribers assume full responsibility for its use.
The shortage of licensed Min-I-Jets resulted in an increased demand for unlicensed Epipen and the Boots Company applied to the MCA for an exemption to import a significant quantity in anticipation of orders from doctors in accordance with Statutory Instrument SI (1984) 673. Normally exemption under this Regulation is refused if there is an equivalent licensed product on the market. In accordance with this practice, exemption was initially refused because of the restored availability of Min-I-Jets. However, it became apparent that although adequate supplies of Min-I-Jets had been resumed, those supplies might not have reached community pharmacists in all areas. The decision to refuse Epipen exemption status was therefore reviewed and subsequently reversed.
The demand for Adrenaline Injection is currently being met by the licensed Min-I-Jets supplemented by the unlicensed Epipen. This Agency understands that an application for a UK product licence may be submitted for Epipen. In such circumstances the application would be assessed by the MCA and if granted the licence would enable Epipen to be marketed in the UK.
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Social Work Records
Mr. Kirkwood : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what changes she intends to make to existing legislation or practice on access to social work records following the proposals issued for consultation by her Department on 26 February 1992 entitled, "Response to the Judgment of the European Court of Human Rights in the case of Graham Gaskin (Access to Records)".
Mr. Bowis : The 1993 White Paper on open government sets out the Government's proposals for a new statutory right of access to personal records, adding to existing rights of access.
Accident and Emergency Services, Barking and Havering
Mr. Gapes : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information she has as to why the London borough of Redbridge was not formally sent a copy of the Barking and Havering health authority consultation document on changes to accident and emergency services.
Mr. Sackville : None. The hon. Member may wish to contact Mr. Bryan Littlewood, chairman of Barking and Havering health authority, for this information.
Infertility
Mr. Corbett : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what provision is made for (a) infertility treatment and (b) infertility investigation in each of the Birmingham health districts ;
(2) what advice each of the Birmingham health districts has sought in the last three years from her Department as to the most cost-effective and cost -efficient means of providing infertility investigation and treatment ;
(3) what has been the (a) revenue spend and (b) capital spend in each of the Birmingham health districts in each of the last three years for which figures are available on infertility treatment ; (4) what has been the (a) revenue spend and (b) capital spend in each of the Birmingham health districts by name in each of the last three years for which figures are available on infertility investigation.
Mr. Sackville : For information about infertility investigation and treatment in Birmingham the hon. Member may wish to contact Mr. B. Stoten, chairman of South Birmingham health authority and Dr. D. M. Skillicorn, chairman of North Birmingham health authority for further information.
The national health service provides a wide range of treatments for subfertility. Individual health authorities determine priorities in the light of local needs and circumstances. Advice is available to health authorities and clinicians in two publications drawn to the attention of the national health service in 1992 :
(a) The Effective Health Care Bulletin on management of subfertility, published for the national health service Management Executive by a consortium of Leeds and York Universities and the research unit of the Royal College of Physicians.
(b) The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists publication "Infertility Guidelines for Practice".
Copies of these publications are available in the Library.
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Mr. Bradley : To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what is the provision for infertility treatment in South Manchester district health authority ;
(2) whether South Manchester district health authority has sought from her Department advice as to the most cost-effective and cost-efficient means of providing for infertility investigation and treatment in its area ;
(3) what provision is made for infertility investigation in South Manchester district health authority.
Mr. Sackville : For the information requested about infertility investigation and treatment in Manchester the hon. Member may wish to contact Professor Robert Boyd, chairman of Manchester health authority. We are not aware of requests for advice on this matter from the former South Manchester health authority.
The national health service provides a wide range of treatments for subfertility. I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave the hon. Member for Birmingham, Northfield (Mr. Burden) on 18 May at column 520.
General Practitioners
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the average budget for (a) GP fundholders and (b) non-fundholders in 1991-92, 1992-93 and 1993-94 for England and by region.
Dr. Mawhinney : Average budgets for general practitioner fundholders by region in 1991-92, 1992-93 and 1993-94 are shown in the table. It is not possible to produce comparable information for non-fundholding general practitioners.
Average budgets for general practitioner
fundholders by region:
1991-92 to 1993-94
£ million
Region |1991-92|1992-93|1993-94
--------------------------------------------------
Northern |1.7 |1.7 |1.8
Yorkshire |1.5 |1.7 |1.8
Trent |1.3 |1.4 |1.5
East Anglian |1.5 |1.7 |1.7
North West Thames |1.3 |1.4 |1.6
North East Thames |1.4 |1.2 |1.4
South East Thames |1.3 |1.4 |1.6
South West Thames |1.3 |1.3 |1.6
Wessex |1.3 |1.5 |1.8
Oxford |1.2 |1.4 |1.6
South Western |1.2 |1.4 |1.6
West Midlands |1.3 |1.4 |1.6
Mersey |1.3 |1.3 |1.6
North Western |1.3 |1.4 |1.5
|--- |--- |---
England |1.4 |1.5 |1.6
Note:
From 1993-94, the scope of the general
practitioner fundholder scheme was expanded to
include the purchase of community health
services. In addition, the minimum list size
criterion for joining the scheme was reduced from
9,000 to 7,000 patients.
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans she has to investigate the extent to which general practitioner fundholders' savings have been used to fund the element of general practitioner staff costs normally paid by the general practitioner.
Dr. Mawhinney : None. The National Health Service (Fund-holding Practices) Regulations 1993 specifically preclude this.
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have applied for recognised general
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practitioner training courses in each year from 1989-90 to 1993-94 ; and what were the figures for individual courses for 1992-93 and 1993-94.Dr. Mawhinney : This information is not available centrally.
Mr. Blunkett : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients have been de-registered by general practitioners in each English health region in each year since 1989.
Dr. Mawhinney : This information is not available centrally.
Yorkshire RHA
Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will set out the total expenditure for each financial year since 1989-90 on the headquarters of the Yorkshire regional health authority at Harrogate.
Mr. Sackville : This is a matter for the Northern and Yorkshire regional health authority. The hon. Member may wish to contact Mr. John Greetham, CBE, chairman of the authority, for details.
Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on the location of the new headquarters for the Yorkshire and North region of the NHS.
Mr. Sackville : The Northern and Yorkshire regional health authority is preparing a business case, to determine the best location of the new regional headquarters.
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