Posted by ed_uk on January 7, 2007, at 7:42:41
In reply to Re: Generics » yxibow, posted by Quintal on January 6, 2007, at 23:50:15
Hi Q
>If a person responds well to a generic they should make sure they stick to that particular brand and not accept any other generic if possible.
......if they pharmacy will allow. In the UK, the system of payment to pharmacies relies on the fact that the pharmacy can choose which generic they use. The £6.65 prescription charge goes to the government, not the pharmacy, and does not cover the cost of the medication. The pharmacy is paid a fixed price by the government for a particular medication eg. fluoxetine 20mg caps, regardless of which generic they dispense. Because different generics vary in price, they pharmacy may refuse to dispense a particular generic if it is too expensive because they would loose a lot of money. Of course, if the patient receives a private prescription and are paying for the medication out of pocket, they can receieve any brand which they want.
GPs are not allowed to demand specific generics (eg. TEVA, Alpharma, Generics UK) on NHS prescriptions. It is up to the pharmacy which generic they give. GPs are, however, allowed to prescribe branded products on the NHS eg. they could prescribe Prozac 20mg caps. In this case, they pharmacy will dispense the brand, often as a European Import. European Imports are used widely in UK community pharmacy because the government pays pharmacies based on the assumption that European Imports will be used. Because of this, the pharmacy will loose money if they dispense the 'English' brand.
Although GPs *can* prescribe drugs by brand eg. Prozac instead of fluoxetine, this practice is strongly discouraged because it wastes vast amounts of NHS money, something which the cash-strapped NHS can ill afford. In short, if people want brands on the NHS, taxes will have to go up!.........a lot!!
Regards
Ed
poster:ed_uk
thread:719885
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20070107/msgs/720104.html