§ Mr. BurstowTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what model his Department intends to roll out for e-prescriptions; what timetable has been set for the roll out; and what the budget was in each of the last three years. [106789]
§ Mr. LammyTo take forward the Government's commitments to electronic transmission of prescriptions (ETP) made in "Information for Health, Pharmacy in the Future—Implementing the NHS Plan and Delivering 21st Century FT Support for the NHS", three pilots were initiated in June 2002. While the three pilots are currently working on different technical solutions in respect of information flows, lessons already learnt from the pilots are contributing to the development of a national model for ETP. This means that appropriate technical standards are being developed covering such areas as the format and content of the electronic prescribing message and security standards. In January 2003 the Department authorised a six-month extension to the pilots to further explore the issues associated with the development of a national model.
"Delivering 21st Century IT Support for the NHS" called for a phased implementation of e-prescribing. The plan envisages that 50 per cent. coverage will be achieved by the end of December 2005, with national coverage being achieved by December 2007, with full clinician and patient functionality.
The Department's contribution to the pilots has largely involved funding the costs of pharmacy connections to the NHSnet, the independent evaluation, and the re-engineering of the Prescription Pricing Authority. The costs of setting up and running the pilot has been met fully by the consortia themselves, based on business justification.