To ask the Secretary of State for Health what regulations govern the prescription of drug treatments to people in (a) early and (b) late stages of Alzheimer's disease. (109479)

There are no specific regulations governing the prescription of drug treatments to people in the early and late stages of Alzheimer's disease. However, the Department expects clinicians to follow current recommendations from the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether provisions exist in the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence guidance on drug treatments for (a) Alzheimer's disease and (b) dementia for clinicians to prescribe the most effective drug treatments available; and if she will make a statement. (112826)

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) and the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) published a clinical guideline on dementia: ‘Supporting people with dementia and their carers in health and social care’ on 22 November 2006. This guideline incorporates NICE's appraisal guidance on the use of drugs for people with Alzheimer's disease and contains supplementary advice to support clinicians on how to accurately diagnose which stage of Alzheimer’s disease an individual has reached.