Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 17 November 2020 to Question 116400, if he has made an assessment of the reasons for the increase in over-the-counter prescribing in each month from July 2019 to March 2020.

The attached table shows the number of over the counter items prescribed and all items prescribed, by month, from July 2019 to March 2020. As shown the number of items prescribed during this period fluctuates on a month by month basis. However, when compared to the same month in the previous year, fewer over the counter items were prescribed in eight of the nine months. In comparison, all items prescribing was greater in eight of the nine months shown with the biggest increase also observed in March 2020.

The reasons why there has been an increase in over the counter prescribing items in March 2020 compared to the same month last year are not known. This could be an anomaly or it may be linked to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Net ingredient cost of over the counter items is dependent not only on the volume of items prescribed but also price changes of individual products.