Written question asked by Lindsay Hoyle (Labour) on Friday, 4 February 2005, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 22 February 2005. It was answered by Melanie Johnson (Labour) on Tuesday, 22 February 2005 on behalf of the Department of Health.

Dept of Health

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people he estimates suffer from Alzheimer's disease in (a) Lancashire and (b) Chorley and South Ribble Primary Care Trust; and which PCTs in Lancashire provide treatment with the drug Ebixa.

Answer: Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people he estimates suffer from Alzheimer's disease in (a) Lancashire and (b) Chorley and South Ribble Primary Care Trust; and which PCTs in Lancashire provide treatment with the drug Ebixa. [215508] Miss Melanie Johnson: The number of people suffering from Alzheimer's disease is not collected centrally. Information on which primary care trusts (PCTs) are currently prescribing Memantine (Ebixa) is not held centrally. Ebixa is not currently covered by existing National Institute for Clinical Excellence guidance. PCTs, when considering the funding of such treatment, are expected to use their existing prescribing arrangements and to consider all the evidence available to them on clinical effectiveness.

Secondary information