§ Mr. Nigel JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans his Department has to extend the prescription of gluten-free flour on the NHS to multiple sclerosis sufferers. [47295]
§ Mr. MilburnThe prescribing of gluten-free flour on the National Health Service for a particular patient is a matter for a general practitioner's clinical judgment, but is open to challenge by the health authority concerned. Multiple sclerosis is not however one of the conditions for which the Advisory Committee on Borderline Substances recommends gluten-free products as suitable for prescribing at NHS expense.
§ Mr. Nigel JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the annual cost to the NHS of the prescription of gluten-free flour for patients suffering from Coeliac's disease. [47296]
§ Mr. MilburnThe latest information on the annual cost of gluten-free products dispensed at National Health Service expense is shown in column 4 of the Oral Nutrition section (BNF 9.4) of Prescription Cost Analysis, England, 1997, copies of which are available in the Library. It is not possible to identify the condition for which any prescription has been written.