We have provided an extra £6.6 billion to manage COVID-19 pressures in the first half of 2021/22. Efforts are underway to boost the performance of the emergency care system including an extra £55 million investment in ambulance trusts and ongoing work on major emergency department upgrade schemes. Emergency department capacity will be increased through expanding waiting areas and increasing the number of treatment cubicles which will reduce overcrowding and improve infection control measures.<\/p>
In addition, providers will offer the flu vaccine to over 35 million people this winter season. This includes a continued offer of vaccination for 50 to 64 year olds and the expansion of the children\u2019s programme to secondary school year 11 to protect children and prevent onward transmission to vulnerable members of the community.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4362", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Edward Argar"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Charnwood"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Edward Argar"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2021-07-22", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2021-07-22T16:23:18.923Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "17"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Health and Social Care"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Health and Social Care"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2021-07-19", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Health Services"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what planning his Department has undertaken to ensure the healthcare system is adequately prepared for covid-19 and influenza in winter 2021.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4777", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Sarah Owen"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Luton North"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Sarah Owen"} ], "uin" : "35903"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1348056", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department of Health and Social Care"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1348056/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
Non-pharmaceutical interventions in place for COVID-19 last winter such as mask-wearing, social-distancing and restricted international travel resulted in extremely low influenza activity globally. As restrictions are lifted, it is expected that winter 2021/2022 will be the first winter in the United Kingdom when seasonal influenza and other respiratory viruses will co-circulate alongside COVID-19. The National Health Service continues to recommend hand washing, using tissues to catch coughs and sneezes and disposing of them as quickly as possible. However, influenza vaccination remains a cost-effective measure to protect those at risk and reduce hospitalisations.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4113", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Nadhim Zahawi"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Stratford-on-Avon"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Nadhim Zahawi"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2021-07-22", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2021-07-22T15:56:26.25Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "17"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Health and Social Care"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Health and Social Care"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2021-07-19", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Influenza: Disease Control"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment the Government has made of the potential merits of preventative measures other than vaccination that could be taken to mitigate a winter flu outbreak in 2021.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4777", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Sarah Owen"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Luton North"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Sarah Owen"} ], "uin" : "35904"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1348068", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department of Health and Social Care"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1348068/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
The Department publishes information on all the contracts it awards, including those relating to goods and service procured in response to COVID- 19, through Contract Award Notices in the Official Journal of the European Union, Find a Tender awarded opportunity notices for each contract are also published on Contracts Finder.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4362", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Edward Argar"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Charnwood"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Edward Argar"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2021-07-22", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2021-07-22T15:00:16.343Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "17"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Health and Social Care"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Health and Social Care"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2021-07-19", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Health Services: Contracts"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department has taken to publish details on the awarding of health contracts during the covid-19 outbreak.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4855", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Sarah Atherton"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Wrexham"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Sarah Atherton"} ], "uin" : "35958"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1348162", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department of Health and Social Care"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1348162/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
Guidance for clinically extremely vulnerable individuals was published on 12 July and outlines support for all clinically extremely vulnerable people, including those who are immunocompromised or immunosuppressed, and is available at the following link:<\/p>