Key facts

In 2004

The net ingredient cost of all prescriptions dispensed was 8,080 million; an increase of 7.6 per cent or 5.2 per cent in real terms on 2003

686 million prescription items were dispensed; an increase of 5.3 per cent on 2003

The average net ingredient cost per prescription item was 11.78; an increase of 1.9 per cent or -0.4 per cent decrease in real terms on 2003

There were on average 13.7 prescription items per head of population compared to 13.0 in 2003

86.9 per cent of all prescription items dispensed were free to patients.

ISBN Reference: 1-84636-002-1

Summary

This bulletin presents a summary of prescriptions dispensed in the community. The statistics cover all prescriptions dispensed by community pharmacists, appliance contractors and dispensing doctors, as well as prescriptions for items personally administered. The bulletin highlights recent changes and the main trends between 1994 and 2004.

A booklet listing individual preparations alphabetically within therapeutic class is published annually and provides details of the number of items, the net ingredient cost and the quantity of individual preparations dispensed in the community in England. The latest publication is titled Prescription Cost Analysis: England 2004 and is available to download below.