§ Mr. Pavittasked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) if he will instruct the department which monitors the prescriptions issued by general practitioners not to adhere to the general rule of allowing only four weeks' supply in the case of specified conditions where permanent medication is essential;
(2) if he will issue a circular to all general practitioners in the National Health Service giving a list of diseases for which the patient is certain to require permanent medication and for which the instruction to prescribe only four weeks' normal supply will be waived.
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§ Dr. VaughanThe Department has issued no instruction to doctors about limiting the supply of medication to patients, nor do its monitoring arrangements contain any rule such as the hon. Member suggests. However, in the interests both of economy and safety in the prescribing of drugs, it does, with the support of the British Medical Association, encourage doctors to restrict the amount they prescribe on any one occasion to no more than is considered reasonable having regard to all the circumstances of the patient concerned.