§ 33. Mr. Bob RussellTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what monitoring is carried out to ensure that IVF treatment is available in every health authority area. [92621]
§ Yvette CooperWe have pledged to tackle unacceptable levels of geographical variations in access to NHS infertility treatment and have set in motion a programme of work to achieve that aim. A Departmental survey of current health authority infertility service provision has recently taken place and the results are being analysed. The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists have published two sets of evidence based on clinical guidelines on infertility and intend to publish the third and final set on specialised services like IVF in January 2000. The RCOG guidelines have been commissioned by the Department.
The survey will enable the cost implications of any policy changes to be estimated and the RCOG guidelines will indicate the circumstances in which infertility treatment can be most clinically effective. We then hope to move towards fairer access to NHS infertility services where those most able to benefit from such treatment will be able to receive it.