Maria Caulfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Caulfield on 2016-01-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when human papilloma virus vaccinations will be available to men who have sex with men through genito-urinary medicine clinics; and what steps his Department is taking to promote that availability.

Jane Ellison

In November 2015, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), the expert body that advises the Government on all immunisation matters, advised that a targeted human papillomavirus vaccination programme should be undertaken for men who have sex with men up to 45 years of age who attend genitourinary medicine and HIV clinics. They noted that this should be subject to procurement of the vaccine and delivery of the programme at a cost-effective price.

The Department is considering the JCVI’s advice and is undertaking a full equality analysis. The Department will confirm its plans in due course.