§ Mr. Barry JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales what arrangements he is making for nicotine patches to be prescribable in Wales; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Gwilym JonesNone.
Generally a doctor may prescribe under the national health service any medicines which are needed for the treatment of his or her patients. The exceptions are those drugs and other substances which have been listed in schedule 10 of the National Health Service (General Medical Services) Regulations 1992 on the advice of the Advisory Committee on Drugs or the Advisory Committee on Borderline Substances (ACBS). These items may not be prescribed by GPs for supply under NHS pharmaceutical services, but may be prescribed privately and in some cases may be purchased without a prescription.
One patch has been included in schedule 10 on the advice of the ACBS, but the product is available on private prescription or over-the-counter from pharmacies. It is open to the committee to review the availability on GP prescription of any similar products.