Written question asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath (Labour) on Tuesday, 7 June 2016, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 21 June 2016. It was answered by Lord Prior of Brampton (Conservative) on Wednesday, 15 June 2016 on behalf of the Department of Health.

Vaccination

Question: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the risk that changes to the cost effectiveness threshold for vaccines as proposed by the Cost Effectiveness Methodology for Immunisation Programmes and Procurements working group would lead to England being restricted from paying for some new vaccines when compared to other health economies in Europe, and people in the UK receiving fewer innovative vaccines.

Answer: The Government expects to receive the Cost Effectiveness Methodology for Immunisation Programmes and Procurement report shortly and will consider its recommendations once received. Until then, it would not be appropriate to speculate on possible recommendations or the impact they might have. We are committed to publishing their report. We will decide when to publish, and whether to consult, once we have had time to consider the report.

Secondary information