Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect on patient care of the requirements for routine outpatient clinics working out of a hospital to advise patients that any prescription must be brought to a regular GP to issue an FP10 prescription to then be taken to a pharmacy.

No Departmental assessment has been made. Where a patient has an immediate need for medication following outpatient attendance, the hospital must supply that medication, rather than requiring the general practitioner (GP) to issue a prescription separately. The supply must be adequate to allow time for the patient’s GP to receive up-to-date information from the hospital about the patient’s care.