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Infectious Diseases: Health Services

Asked by Jo PlattLabour (Co-op)Department of Health and Social CareTabled Answered 17 February 2025UIN 29111

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of establishing a centre of excellence for care and research for infection-associated chronic conditions.

Answered by Ashley Dalton

We do not anticipate setting up a new centre of excellence for care and research specifically for post-viral or infection-associated conditions. The Department funds research on post-viral conditions through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR and Medical Research Council (MRC) remain committed to funding high-quality research to understand the causes, consequences, and treatment of post-viral conditions such as myalgic encephalomyelitis, also known as chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), and long COVID, and are actively exploring next steps for stimulating further research in this area. The MRC and NIHR currently fund research through a variety of routes, including infrastructure, research programmes, capacity building, for example research fellowships, and in the case of NIHR, research delivery to support recruitment to studies. Funding is available for infection-associated research.

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