Sharon Hodgson responds to hormone replacement therapy and contraceptive shortages

Sharon Hodgson MP, Labour’s Shadow Public Health Minister, responding to hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and contraceptive shortages, said:

“It is unacceptable that patients have not been able to access HRT and contraceptives for so long. This has had unbearable consequences on women, which must be put to an end.

“The Government must be transparent about why these shortages were allowed to happen and continue for so long, and what provisions will be put in place for patients who need access to HRT and contraceptives.”

Ends

Notes to Editors

·        The Royal College of Obstetricians, the Gynaecologists and British Menopause Society, and the Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare have written to Health Secretary Matt Hancock calling for a group to be set up to address the root cause of the shortages of hormone replacement therapy and some contraceptives, following what they call an “extremely frustrating” lack of transparency.

·        Experts say the unacceptable shortages of hormone replacement therapy are harming women approaching the menopause and a struggle to access some contraceptives risks a rise in unplanned pregnancies and abortio