To ask the Minister of Health what data his Department holds on the number of re-admissions of people with long Covid who were initially admitted to hospital with COVID-19 as the primary diagnosis versus those admitted for other reasons; and when the specification for requisite support for people who have long Covid will be brought forward.

My Department does not hold information on the number of readmissions of people with long Covid who were initially admitted to hospital with Covid-19 as the primary diagnosis versus those admitted for other reasons.

The National Institute for Care and Health Excellence (NICE) published a rapid guideline on the management of the long-term effects of Covid-19 on 18 December 2020. The guideline can be accessed at https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng188. It has been automatically accepted for Northern Ireland and will now be applied across the Health & Social Care sector.

In response, the Health and Social Care Board has recently been commissioned (HSCB) to initiate work in respect of the assessment of people who continue to experience long-term health effects as a result of Covid-19 infection. In particular, HSCB have been tasked with developing costed proposals, in light of the NICE guideline and the specification for the multidisciplinary assessment clinics in England.