ROS welcomes Conservative commitment for universal Fracture Liaison Services by 2030, while encouraging more “boldness”

Health and Social Care Secretary Victoria Atkins made the following commitment at Health Questions in the Commons on Wednesday:

“Every year in England, some 67,000 fractures are suffered by people of working age, the majority of whom are women, and many of them are entirely preventable. I have listened to the tireless campaigning of the Royal Osteoporosis Society and the campaigns of the Express and The Mail on Sunday, so today I want to confirm that this Government has the ambition to expand the use of fracture liaison services to every integrated care board in England and achieve 100% coverage by 2030.” 

The Royal Osteoporosis Society (ROS) has welcomed this move, while warning that people with osteoporosis need urgent, decisive action from whichever party wins the election. 

Craig Jones, Chief Executive said:

“People with osteoporosis are pleased that Fracture Liaison Services – the world standard for diagnosing osteoporosis early – has, at long last, been enshrined in Government policy.  It’s desperately important that whichever party wins the election honours this commitment.  Every year we delay the set-up of these life-saving services, 8,000 more people die following broken hips which could have been prevented.  So let’s be bolder and get these crucial clinics up and running well before 2030”.