§ Mr. Pavittasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if the limit of six free drug samples which prevails in other 743W Common Market countries is now applied in the United Kingdom.
§ Mr. MoyleThere are no general EEC rules about limiting the number of samples which may be supplied to doctors, although some member States have specific requirements. The Commission of the European Communities has put forward proposals for a draft directive on the advertising of proprietary medicinal products, and this includes some restrictions on the supply of samples.
In the United Kingdom there are no statutory limits on the number of drug samples which may be supplied to doctors. The code of practice of the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry specifies that limited samples may be provided in certain circumstances, for example, for familiarisation with the presentation and appearance of the product. Under proposals recently agreed between my Department and the pharmaceutical industry, each individual sample will not exceed four days' treatment for a single patient. Expenditure on the supply of samples other than those for identification purposes is no longer allowed as a cost under the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme.