To ask the Minister of Health what proposals he will bring forward to make Group B Strep tests during pregnancy after 35 weeks available to all women who request them.

The current recommendation from the UK National Screening Committee (NSC), which advises all four UK Departments of Health, and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists is that screening for Group B Strep (GBS) infection should not be offered to all pregnant women. This is because it is not known whether this would do more good than harm. There is serious concern that screening would result in large numbers of women receiving antibiotics they do not need, with possible adverse health effects for mothers and babies. GBS Screening is, however, offered to women who had GBS detected in a previous pregnancy.

In Northern Ireland every pregnant woman is provided with a hard copy of the Pregnancy Book which is reviewed and updated by the Public Health Agency (PHA) on a regular basis (most recent edition published in May 2020). It is also available on the PHA website (page 51). The 2020 Pregnancy Book contains information on GBS including specific information about what happens if a woman has had GBS in a previous pregnancy and the circumstances in which a woman will be offered antibiotics during labour. https://www.publichealth.hscni.net/sites/default/files/2020-05/Pregnancy%20book%202020%20%E2%80%93%20196%20pages.pdf

In November 2019 the Chief Medical Officer and Chief Nursing Officer issued a reminder letter to the health service, highlighting the need to ensure that women who had GBS detected in a previous pregnancy are offered the appropriate options in relation to testing and treatment.

You will be aware that research to find the best way to prevent illness and death due to GBS infection in newborn babies is underway. Once the results of this research are available these will be considered by the NSC and the Department to determine whether the current policy should be changed.