Thank you for your request for information about the following:

Request

‘I would like to make a Freedom of Information request regarding prescription items dispensed in the community. Specifically, I would like to receive data on:

(1) The total number of items dispensed in the community,

(2) The total number of items dispensed by distance-selling pharmacies in the community,

(3) The total value (in £) of items dispensed in the community,

(4) The total value (in £) of items dispensed by distance-selling pharmacies in the community.

I would like the data to be provided on an annual basis, covering financial years 2021/22 to 2023/24. Please also include data from the first half of 2024/25, if available.

I am aware of a previous FOI on this topic published on your website (FOI 22304), so my request is to essentially update the volume provided in that database with more recent data, and add information on the value of dispensed items.’

The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) received your request on 13 November 2024.

We have handled your request under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 2000.

Our response

I can confirm that the NHSBSA holds the information you have requested and a copy of the information is attached.

Please read the below notes to ensure correct understanding of the data.

NHSBSA

NHS Prescription Services process prescriptions for Pharmacy Contractors, Appliance Contractors, Dispensing Doctors and Personal Administration with information then used to make payments to pharmacists and appliance contractors in England for prescriptions dispensed in primary care settings (other arrangements are in place for making payments to Dispensing Doctors and Personal Administration). This involves processing over 1 billion prescription items and payments totalling over £9 billion each year. The information gathered from this process is then used to provide information on costs and trends in prescribing in England and Wales to over 25,000 registered NHS and Department of Health and Social Care users.

Data Source: ePACT2

Data in ePACT2 is sourced from the NHSBSA Data Warehouse and is derived from products prescribed on prescriptions and dispensed in the Community. The data captured from prescription processing is used to calculate reimbursement and remuneration. It includes items prescribed in England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Guernsey / Alderney, Jersey, and Isle of Man which have been dispensed in the community in England. English prescribing that has been dispensed in Wales, Scotland, Guernsey / Alderney, Jersey, and Isle of Man is also included.

The Data excludes:

• Items not dispensed, disallowed and those returned to the contractor for further clarification.

• Prescriptions prescribed and dispensed in Prisons, Hospitals and Private prescriptions.

• Items prescribed but not presented for dispensing or not submitted to NHS Prescription Services by the dispenser.

Time Period

Financial Years 2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/24, 2024 (data to September).

Organisation Data

The data is for items dispensed in the community in England regardless of where prescribed.

Data

This dataset is limited to all dispensed items and NIC (£) and of that number those items and NIC (£) dispensed by distance selling pharmacies.

Figures for distance selling pharmacies includes only English pharmacies, and not appliance contractors or pharmacies outside of England.

The number of distance selling pharmacies listed are ALL distance selling pharmacies, not just those who have dispensed items.

Items

Shows the number of times a product appears on a prescription form not the quantity prescribed.

Net Ingredient Cost (£)

Net Ingredient cost (NIC) is the basic price of a drug as stated in Part II Clause 8 of the Drug Tariff but please note that where a price concession for items listed in Part VIII of the Drug Tariff has been agreed between the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee the NIC will reflect the concession price rather than the Drug Tariff price.

Data Queries

If you have any queries regarding the data provided, or if you plan on publishing, the data please contact foidata@nhsbsa.nhs.uk ensuring you quote the above reference. This is important to ensure that the figures are not misunderstood or misrepresented.

Reusing the data and copyright

If you plan on producing a press or broadcast story based upon the data please contact communicationsteam@nhsbsa.nhs.uk. This is important to ensure that the figures are not misunderstood or misrepresented.

The information supplied to you continues to be protected by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 and is subject to NHSBSA copyright. This information is licenced under the terms of the Open Government Licence detailed at:

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

Should you wish to re-use the information you must include the following statement: “NHSBSA Copyright 2024” Failure to do so is a breach of the terms of the licence.

Information you receive which is not subject to NHSBSA Copyright continues to be protected by the copyright of the person, or organisation, from which the information originated. Please obtain their permission before reproducing any third party (non NHSBSA Copyright) information.