Laurence Robertson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Laurence Robertson on 2014-06-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what his policy is on NHS patients receiving Enterra gastric stimulator treatment.
Jane Ellison
Funding of gastroelectrical stimulation procedures is a matter for local clinical commissioning groups (CCGs). If a clinician considers that a patient in their care may benefit from this procedure, they would need to submit an Individual Funding Request to their CCG so that they can consider the case.
In May 2014 the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) issued new Interventional Procedure (IP) guidance on gastro-electrical stimulation for gastroparesis, which is a chronic disorder in which the stomach empties more slowly than normal. The guidance can be found at the following link:
www.nice.org.uk/nicemedia/live/14531/67802/67802.pdf
NICE’s IP Programme assesses the safety and efficacy of (mainly) new procedures that are used for diagnosis or treatment that involve incision, puncture, entry into a body cavity or the use of ionising, electromagnetic or acoustic energy. Unlike NICE’s technology appraisals programme, it is not within the remit of the IP Programme to evaluate the cost effectiveness of IPs or to advise the National Health Service on whether IPs should be funded.
