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Written question asked by Baroness Gale (Labour) on Wednesday, 22 July 2020, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 5 August 2020. It was answered by Lord Bethell (Conservative) on Thursday, 20 August 2020 on behalf of the Department of Health and Social Care.


Pharmacy: Prescription Drugs

Question

To ask Her Majesty's Government how much NHS England has saved since over the counter medicines were taken off the prescription list in 2018.

Answer

In March 2018, NHS England and NHS Improvement and NHS Clinical Commissioners published Conditions for which over the counter items should not routinely be prescribed in primary care: Guidance for Clinical Commissioning Groups.

Since publication of this guidance, there has been a reduction in spend of £32 million on over the counter items. This reduction includes spending on over the counter items for conditions that are self-limiting and conditions which lend themselves to self-care, as well as vitamins, minerals and probiotics. This estimate is correct as at 10 July 2020.

The list of over the counter products is updated as new products become available.


Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
HL7133
Session
2019-21
Subjects
Expenditure NHS Pharmacy Prescription drugs
Contains statistics
Yes
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk