Tag: Andrew Percy

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2015-10-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate his Department has made of the number of people with both ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease who have benefitted from the use of vedolizumab as a treatment option since February 2015; and what the cost of this treatment has been in that period.

George Freeman

Information is not collected centrally on the number of people prescribed medicines or the medical condition being treated.

Some data is available for the administration of vedolizumab however this data does not correspond to patient numbers nor can it be linked to the treatment of specific diseases. Some information on cost is also available but this is the cost of the medicines at NHS list price and not necessarily the price that hospitals paid.

In guidance published in August 2015, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) advised that vedolizumab is the recommended treatment for adults with moderate to severe Crohn’s disease if a type of treatment called a tumour necrosis factor alpha inhibitor is not suitable or has not worked well enough. NICE also recommend vedolizumab as a possible treatment for adults with moderate to severe ulcerative colitis in separate guidance published on 5 June 2015.

In both cases, people should be able to have vedolizumab until it stops working, or surgery is needed, or for 12 months after starting it, whichever is shorter. Their condition should be assessed 12 months after they started taking vedolizumab. If they still have symptoms but it is clear that the treatment is helping, they can continue to have the drug. If they no longer have symptoms, treatment can be stopped, and later restarted if their symptoms return. Drugs recommended by NICE should be available on the NHS within three months of the technology appraisal guidance being issued.

NICE has set out best practice in the diagnosis, treatment care and support of patients with Crohn’s diseases and ulcerative colitis in its guidance Crohn’s Disease Management in Adults, Children and Young People in October 2012, and Ulcerative Colitis Management in Adults, Children and Young People , published in June 2013. Treatment for both Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis is largely directed at symptom relief to improve quality of life, rather than cure. Management options include drug therapy, dietary and lifestyle advice and, in severe or chronic active disease, surgery.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2015-10-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of vedolizumab as a treatment for Crohn’s disease.

George Freeman

Information is not collected centrally on the number of people prescribed medicines or the medical condition being treated.

Some data is available for the administration of vedolizumab however this data does not correspond to patient numbers nor can it be linked to the treatment of specific diseases. Some information on cost is also available but this is the cost of the medicines at NHS list price and not necessarily the price that hospitals paid.

In guidance published in August 2015, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) advised that vedolizumab is the recommended treatment for adults with moderate to severe Crohn’s disease if a type of treatment called a tumour necrosis factor alpha inhibitor is not suitable or has not worked well enough. NICE also recommend vedolizumab as a possible treatment for adults with moderate to severe ulcerative colitis in separate guidance published on 5 June 2015.

In both cases, people should be able to have vedolizumab until it stops working, or surgery is needed, or for 12 months after starting it, whichever is shorter. Their condition should be assessed 12 months after they started taking vedolizumab. If they still have symptoms but it is clear that the treatment is helping, they can continue to have the drug. If they no longer have symptoms, treatment can be stopped, and later restarted if their symptoms return. Drugs recommended by NICE should be available on the NHS within three months of the technology appraisal guidance being issued.

NICE has set out best practice in the diagnosis, treatment care and support of patients with Crohn’s diseases and ulcerative colitis in its guidance Crohn’s Disease Management in Adults, Children and Young People in October 2012, and Ulcerative Colitis Management in Adults, Children and Young People , published in June 2013. Treatment for both Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis is largely directed at symptom relief to improve quality of life, rather than cure. Management options include drug therapy, dietary and lifestyle advice and, in severe or chronic active disease, surgery.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2015-10-27.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the time taken to decide on patient access scheme applications for drugs through the Cancer Drugs Fund.

George Freeman

Within the framework set out in the 2014 Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme, a Patient Access Scheme (PAS) can be proposed by a pharmaceutical company and agreed by the Department to improve the cost-effectiveness of a medicine as part of a National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) technology appraisal.

A PAS proposal can only be submitted for a medicine that is available through the Cancer Drugs Fund if that product is also scheduled for appraisal or review by NICE and no assessment has been of the time taken to consider any such PAS proposals.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2015-02-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answers of 2 February 2015 to Questions 222495, 222494 and 222493, how many medicines were paid for by the industry rebate payments through the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme in 2014 in each (a) financial quarter and (b) therapeutic area.

George Freeman

The Mandate for 2015-16 has set a firm NHS England budget for 2015-16, which is £3 billion (3%) higher than its budget for 2014-15. This increase takes into account a number of things, including additional funding for the National Health Service announced in the Autumn Statement and the fact that the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS) payment in 2015-16 is now forecast to be higher than originally expected.

All the PPRS payments go back into spending on improving patients’ health and care and it will be up to NHS England how they split that overall budget between clinical commissioning groups, specialised commissioning etc. Following normal Government accounting rules, there is no separately identified ring-fenced funding stream associated with the PPRS payment. Accordingly, it would not be possible to identify what or how many medicines are paid for by PPRS payments.

The Government believes that NHS commissioners and providers are best placed to decide how to allocate their budgets to deliver improvements in the outcomes for patients. The PPRS includes a number of commitments for improving patient outcomes and for improving patient access to clinically and cost effective medicines.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2015-02-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 2 February 2015 to Question 222493, what records NHS England keeps of the medicines that are paid for by the industry rebate payments through the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme.

George Freeman

The Mandate for 2015-16 has set a firm NHS England budget for 2015-16, which is £3 billion (3%) higher than its budget for 2014-15. This increase takes into account a number of things, including additional funding for the National Health Service announced in the Autumn Statement and the fact that the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS) payment in 2015-16 is now forecast to be higher than originally expected.

All the PPRS payments go back into spending on improving patients’ health and care and it will be up to NHS England how they split that overall budget between clinical commissioning groups, specialised commissioning etc. Following normal Government accounting rules, there is no separately identified ring-fenced funding stream associated with the PPRS payment. Accordingly, it would not be possible to identify what or how many medicines are paid for by PPRS payments.

The Government believes that NHS commissioners and providers are best placed to decide how to allocate their budgets to deliver improvements in the outcomes for patients. The PPRS includes a number of commitments for improving patient outcomes and for improving patient access to clinically and cost effective medicines.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2015-02-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether his Department has conducted a study on the viability of a New Medicines Fund for England.

George Freeman

We have no plans to do so.

On 12 January 2015, NHS England announced that it plans to further increase the level of investment for drugs in the Cancer Drugs Fund to an expected £340 million in 2015-16.

The Government is implementing all of the commitments in the 2014 Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS) on improving access to innovative medicines commensurate with the outcomes they offer patients. In addition, NHS England and the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry are pressing ahead with plans to maximise the benefits of the PPRS by improving access to and optimising the use of medicines to improve patient outcomes.

More generally, we have launched an ‘Innovative Medicines and Medical Technology Review’ of the pathways for the development, assessment, and adoption of innovative medicines and medical technology. This review will consider how to speed up access for National Health Service patients to cost-effective new diagnostics, medicines and devices. The review will examine the pathway from ‘first in human’ trials, through licensing and health technology appraisal, to commissioning and clinical practice. It will set out both short and long-term options for action by Government and relevant bodies, including the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and NHS England, and mark a major contribution to the policy debate.