Items less suitable for prescribing

In 2019 NHS England issued guidance on a number of medicinal products which should not be routinely prescribed in primary care. These include:

  • Products of low clinical effectiveness, where there is a lack of robust evidence of clinical effectiveness or there are significant safety concerns;
  • Products which are clinically effective but where more cost-effective products are available, including some products that have been subject to excessive price inflation; and
  • Products which are clinically effective but due to the nature of the product are deemed a low priority for NHS funding.

The national guidance is available here.

The ICB had adopted this guidance and developed patient information leaflets and position statements for each category.