§ 55. Mr. Pavittasked the Minister of Health if he will state the rate of increase in the prescribing of proprietary drugs in the National Health Service this year as compared with last, and the percentage of the total now prescribed, represented by proprietaries; and what new action he proposes to take to persuade doctors to prescribe non-proprietary equivalents, without interfering with their clinical freedom.
§ Mr. K. RobinsonPrescriptions of proprietary preparations totalled just 153W under 74 per cent. of all prescriptions during the year ended 31st March, 1965, compared with 71 per cent. the previous year. Lists have been issued of such preparations with non-proprietary equivalents and I intend to revise and re-issue these when I have advice from the Standing Joint Committee on the Classification of Proprietary Preparations.