Letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care to Convener, 24 June 2021
I would like to congratulate you on your recent appointment as Committee Convener. I look forward to working with you and Committee members in the years ahead.
I am writing to highlight to the Committee that the Scottish Government introduced the above Bill to Parliament on 23 June, meeting one of our ‘First 100 days’ manifesto commitments.
The purpose of the Bill is to give power to the Scottish Ministers to reimburse persons who have entered into arrangements privately and have paid to have transvaginal mesh removed from their body, in relation to the costs of removal surgery and also reasonable connected expenses.
The Scottish Government recognises that people have suffered considerable harm as a result of complications arising from the use of transvaginal mesh and we are determined to do everything within our power to help those affected. The introduction of this Bill forms part of a range of measures being undertaken to improve the services for people with complications arising as a result of mesh surgery. In light of this, we consider that those who have opted to pay for private mesh removal surgery should be reimbursed, because people in the same circumstances will shortly have the option of having comparable treatment arranged and paid for by the NHS.
The Health and Social Care Alliance will shortly undertake a patient focus group, to understand patients’ views on how a scheme of reimbursement might work in practice. The feedback from this will play an important role in shaping the scheme.
I hope that the Bill will receive strong cross party support as it goes through the Parliamentary process. In order to allow those affected to be reimbursed with the minimum of delay, our hope is that the Bill will receive Royal Assent as quickly as possible.
I do of course appreciate the implications that work on the Bill will have for the Committee’s programme, particularly given that capacity will be impacted by work in relation to Covid-19 recovery. However, it is my hope that, given the difficult circumstances that people who have paid for private surgery themselves may find themselves in, the Committee will support this relatively tight timetable for the Bill and commence early consideration.
My officials and I would be pleased to provide any further information that Committee Members might wish to see in order to help with consideration and scrutiny of the Bill, and I look forward to appearing before the Committee during Stage 1.
Yours sincerely,
Transvaginal Mesh Removal (Cost Reimbursement) (Scotland) Bill