§ Dr. Roger Thomasasked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether it is the intention of the Government, as part of the cuts in public spending, to introduce a limited list of drugs, an approved list from which doctors would be encouraged to prescribe.
§ Dr. VaughanNo. I do not believe such a list would of itself achieve economies in the cost of the NHS or necessarily be in the best interest of patients. The Department currently takes a number of measures aimed at obtaining value for the money spent on prescribed medicines, including providing to doctors independently produced information about drugs and therapeutics and about comparative costs of medicines.
A publication provided free of charge—and one to which doctors are encouraged to refer—is the British national formulary (BNF). This offers the doctor a comprehensive range of drugs including notes on their use and guidance on prescribing. A revised BNF is in the course of preparation by the professions, the aim being to improve still further the value and quality of information it carries.