Written question asked by Andrea Jenkyns (Conservative) on Thursday, 27 June 2019, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 1 July 2019. It was answered by Seema Kennedy (Conservative) on Thursday, 4 July 2019 on behalf of the Department of Health and Social Care.

Streptococcus

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the recent outbreak of group A streptococcal bacterial strain.

Answer: 12 people have died while a further 20 cases have been reported, many among elderly people with existing health conditions. The infection risk of contracting group A streptococcal bacterial strain to the public is very low. Treatment with antibiotics is very effective, if started early enough. The local National Health Service continues to work closely with Public Health England and other partners to manage this local incident, and extra infection control measures have been put in place to prevent the infection spreading in the area.

Secondary information