Clause 2 - Health functions
Health Protection Agency Bill [Lords]
3:00 pm
Miss Melanie Johnson (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department of Health; Welwyn Hatfield, Labour)
May I deal with the points that the hon. Gentleman has already raised?
I turn now to the hon. Gentleman's points about hepatitis C and tuberculosis. Hepatitis C was identified in the chief medical officer's infectious diseases strategy, ''Getting Ahead of the Curve'', as the hon. Gentleman knows. In August 2002, we published a consultation paper, and today we have published an action plan to implement the strategy. It sets out a framework of actions to improve prevention, diagnosis and treatment, and to strengthen the evidence base. The actions cover four key areas: surveillance and research, increasing awareness and the detection of undiagnosed infections, high-quality health and social care services, and prevention.
The action plan will be underpinned by professional and public awareness campaigns centrally funded by the Department. That will help to prevent new infections and lead to the diagnosis of more people with hepatitis C so that they can be assessed for antiviral drug therapy treatment.