§ Mr. McCrindleasked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) what effect the introduction of limited list prescribing has had since the regulations were introduced; and if he will make a statement;
(2) if he proposes to amend the regulations relating to limited list prescribing; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeWe have been impressed by the smoothness of the introduction of the selected list and recognise that this in large part due to the efforts of the doctors and pharmacists. We hope that it is now generally recognised that the selected list is a very sensible way of making better use of National Health Service resources, without harming patients.
There has, however, been some uncertainty about the circumstances in which scheduled drugs may be dispensed against prescriptions for non-scheduled ones with the same ingredients. Amending regulations were laid yesterday to clarify the position.
§ Mr. McCrindleasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is his estimate of the cost savings of limited list prescribing to the National Health Service to date; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeIt is too early to make any estimate of the savings achieved to date from the introduction of selected list prescribing. April prescriptions are still being priced and will not in any case be a reliable indicator of future savings since prescriptions written before 1 April could be dispensed until the end of April.