To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients who received human growth hormone treatment have utilised the helpline or availed themselves of the counselling provided through her Department; what help or advice is being offered with particular reference to financial matters, including life insurance availability and mortgages; and if she will make a statement.
The helpline is provided by the department of growth and development at the Institute of Child Health of Great Ormond Street hospital. No record of the number of telephone inquiries has been maintained but the institute is also providing counselling for patients treated at one of the three London growth centres; of the 711 patients treated, 295 have asked for and received counselling. Details of the numbers of patients who have availed themselves of the counselling services provided elsewhere in the country are currently being collected. I understand that patients experiencing difficulty in obtaining life insurance or mortgages are advised to make inquiries across a range of providers of these services, since the terms and conditions very often vary.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations she has received about financial support for those who received human growth hormone treatment and may now be at risk of contracting Creutzfeldt Jakob disease; and what estimate she has made of the cost of setting up an insurance fund for such people.
We have received a number of representations, but as the treatment conformed with the best known scientific and clinical practice of the time we do not accept that there are grounds for financial support over and above the benefits which are available under the Social Security Acts. No estimate has therefore been made of the cost of a separate insurance fund.