§ Mr. David AtkinsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Health when will decide whether the drug Memantine should be made available on the NHS to treat Alzheimer's disease; and if he will make a statement. [106520]
§ Jacqui SmithThe National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) will appraise memantine, for the treatment of Alzheimer's Disease, as part of the eighth wave of its work programme. Until NICE has made its recommendations, local decisions are being made about its availability on the National Health Service based on each area's interpretation of publicly available effectiveness data.