HL Deb 31 March 1999 vol 599 cc41-2WA
Viscount Long

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What action they propose to take to combat the incidence of human tuberculosis. [HL1753]

Baroness Hayman

Steps have been taken to strengthen the surveillance, prevention and control of tuberculosis, including drug-resistant tuberculosis within the United Kingdom. The main measures for dealing with tuberculosis include promptly identifying cases, treating them and examining their contacts; the routine immunisation of children in schools; screening people entering the UK from countries where the incidence is high and arranging BCG immunisation or treatment where necessary; immunising the new-born infants and children of immigrants from areas with a high incidence of tuberculosis and monitoring the population to keep up to date with trends in incidence. Last year detailed guidance on the prevention and control of HIV-related and drug-resistant tuberculosis was sent to all health authorities. In particular, the guidance advises on minimising factors that contribute to the transmission of infection and the development of drug-resistant tuberculosis.

Viscount Long

asked Her Majesty's Government:

How many notifications of human tuberculosis were made in (a) 1995; (b) 1996; (c) 1997 and (d) 1998. [HL1751]

Baroness Hayman

The numbers of notifications of tuberculosis in the United Kingdom are published in theAnnual Abstract of Statistics. Information for the years 1995 to 1997 are given in the table.

Year Number of notifications of tuberculosis in the UK*
1995 6,174
1996 6,238
1997 6,367

* Annual Abstract of Statistics. Sources: Scottish Health Service Common Services Agency; Department of Health and Social Services (Northern Ireland); Office for National Statistics. This information is not yet available for 1998.

Viscount Long

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What is the average cost of treatment for (a) an individual suffering from ordinary tuberculosis: and (b) an individual suffering from multi-drug resistan't tuberculosis. [HL1754]

Baroness Hayman

An estimate made last year suggested that the cost of treating an individual with multi-drug resistant tuberculosis is a minimum of £50,000, compared with around £6,000 for a case of drug sensitive tuberculosis (V. White, J. Moore-Gillon Resource Implications of Patients with Multi-drug Resistant Tuberculosis, Conference of the British Thoracic Society 1998).