Changes to local NHS prescribing In order to protect funding for our most essential health services – things like cancer care, emergency care, life threatening conditions and mental health services, GPs across Barking and Dagenham, Havering and Redbridge are stopping prescribing some medicines. You may have been prescribed one or more of these medicines in the past. You will see that there are some exceptions, and these are listed below.
From 10 July 2017 The Robins surgery will be:
- No longer prescribing some ‘over the counter’ medicines and products (including multi vitamins, gluten-free food, muscle rubs etc.) on the NHS
- Stopping NHS funding for procedures that are purely cosmetic – except for cancer patients
- Reducing the number of embryo transfers for IVF that the NHS will fund locally
- Introducing new criteria for weight-loss surgery on the NHS.
The Robins Surgery will therefore no longer be able to prescribe any of the following medicines/products on the NHS:
- Gluten-free products - e.g. bread
- Medicines for dental conditions – e.g. mouthwashes, toothpastes
- Head lice and/or scabies medication
- Deep Heat/Tiger balm and other Rubefacient or ‘muscle rub’ creams
- Omega 3 and other fish oil supplements
- Multivitamin supplements
- Eye vitamin supplements
- Colic remedies for babies
- Cough and cold remedies
- Paracetamol and ibuprofen
- Soya-based formula milk
- Travel vaccinations: We are no longer funding hepatitis A and B combined, hepatitis B, meningococcal meningitis, Japanese encephalitis, rabies, tick-borne encephalitis, TB or yellow fever jabs.
Exceptions: The above does not apply to:
- Patients with chronic pain (paracetamol and ibuprofen)
- Children (paracetamol and ibuprofen can still be prescribed in liquid form)
- Travel vaccinations still funded: cholera, diphtheria, polio and tetanus booster, hepatitis A, typhoid.
For more details please visit Spending NHS Money Wisely or download the following document NHS Changes
NHS App: Now Available on Google Play and Apple Store
This allows you to order repeats, book appointments, view records, has a symptoms checker and NHS 111 online and more. if you are already setup for online services you will need to use your account ID and pin that you were originally given (please ask reception if you have lost it).