Question
Millions rely on daily medication to stay alive and healthy. We know the concern shortages cause; the NHS does not allow people to stockpile prescription medicines, and some require refrigeration. Will the NHS therefore now allow people to keep a small amount of spare medicine, and how will the Government ensure access to essential medications during widespread disruption to supplies, movement of goods or power?
Answer
The hon. Lady is absolutely right to raise this particular issue. I know she will have seen that there is specific advice on the checklist with regard to medicine and health. The design of the campaign has been worked up closely with a range of different organisations, with a range of different stakeholder cohorts in mind, including people who are medically vulnerable for a range of different reasons. We are acutely conscious of the risk to those particular people, and the campaign has been carefully designed with them at the forefront of our mind to ensure that they will be best protected in the context of an everyday emergency.20% vibes
Verdict: RED (22/100)
The reply only partly answers the two parts of the question, and both answers are vague. It does not say whether people may keep spare prescription medicine, and instead points to general checklist advice without stating what that advice says. It also describes the campaign as designed with medically vulnerable people in mind but names no specific way to keep medicine supplies available if supply chains, transport or power are disrupted. A member of the public would likely need to ask again for specifics.
How we got there
| Question item | Coverage | Specificity | Rationale |
|---|---|---|---|
| Will the NHS now allow people to keep a small amount of spare prescription medicine (stockpiling)? | Partially Addressed | Hedged | The reply never says whether people may keep spare prescription medicine; it only points to 'specific advice on the checklist' on medicine and health without stating what that advice says about stockpiling, and the opening sentence is a courtesy with no substance. |
| How will the Government ensure access to essential medications during widespread disruption to supplies, the movement of goods, or power supply? | Partially Addressed | Hedged | The reply describes a campaign designed with medically vulnerable people 'at the forefront' for an everyday emergency and refers to checklist advice, but names no mechanism for keeping medicine supplies available during disruption to supply chains, transport or power. |