§ Mr. Keith BradleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 16 July 2002, Official Report, column 124W, on henoch schonlein purpura, what criteria his Department uses to allocate funding in respect of combating henoch chonlein purpura among children. [72725]
1423W
§ Jacqui SmithHenoch-Schonlein Purpura is most common among young children and may occur after an infection. Most children make a good recovery, with no specific treatment, but a few can develop serious complications. Whilst funding is not allocated specifically for combating Henoch-Schonlein Purpura, funding is allocated to health authorities and primary care trusts (PCT) on the basis of the relative needs of their populations. A weighted capitation formula is used to determine each health authority's/PCT's share of available resources, to enable them to commission similar levels of health services for populations in similar need.