HC Deb 05 May 2004 vol 420 cc1621-2W
Tim Loughton

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of excess deaths linked to obesity in each of the last five years. [169048]

Miss Melanie Johnson

The information requested is not available.

Tim Loughton

To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many different anti-obesity drugs are prescribed in the NHS; [169049]

(2) how many prescriptions for obesity drugs have been issued in each of the last five years. [169057]

Miss Melanie Johnson

In 2003, six different chemical entities of drugs used in the treatment of obesity were dispensed in the community in England. However, Orlistat and Sibutramine (the two National Institute for Clinical Excellence-appraised drugs) accounted for virtually all the items (99.96 per cent. of total items).

The table shows the number of prescriptions for obesity drugs issued in the last five years.

Thousand
Number of prescription items

(obesity drugs)
1999 148.1
2000 162.3
2001 470.3
2002 738.9
2003 690.0
Source:
Prescription Cost Analysis (PCA) data from the Prescription Pricing Authority.