§ Mr. Martyn JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what estimate he has made of the number of under-25 year olds residing in England receiving free prescriptions in Wales since 1 April 2001; [41621]
(2) what assessment he has made of the savings made by his Department since 1 April 2001 in relation to under-25 year olds residing in England receiving free prescriptions in Wales. [41622]
§ Ms Blears[holding answer 12 March 2002]: Information about cross-border dispensing does not include information about the age of individual patients. The information available about cross-border dispensing is in the table.
£ Number of items1 Net Ingredient Cost Written in England and dispensed in Wales2 Quarter ended June 2000 50,618 744,721 Quarter ended June 2001 56,644 848,914 Written in Wales and dispensed in England3 Quarter ended June 2000 54,885 1,508,928 Quarter ended June 2001 58,471 1,753,489 1 Dispensed by community pharmacies and appliance contractors. 2 Source: Prescribing Services Unit of Health Solutions Wales, Bro Taf Health Authority. Source: Prescription Pricing Authority.