PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Rare Diseases: Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products (20 October 2020)

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is undertaking to ensure that the NHS and wider health system is prepared for the adoption of advanced therapy medicinal products for the treatment of rare diseases.

Asked by:
Bob Blackman (Conservative)

The National Health Service is involved in research, development and adoption readiness of Advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs) through the Advanced Therapy Treatment Centre network, which is hosted by the Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult and set up through funding from the UK Research and Innovation Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund. ATMPs for the treatment of a range of conditions including rare diseases are appraised for clinical and cost effectiveness by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). The NHS, the Accelerated Access Collaborative and direct commissioning teams work with a range of stakeholders to undertake detailed horizon scanning for ATMPs to ensure the relevant clinical and implementation preparations can be made where treatments are recommended by NICE.

Answered by:
Jo Churchill (Conservative)
5 November 2020