New data from NHS Digital shows that the amount of money the NHS is spending on medication has more than doubled in under ten years, including those prescribed in primary care and hospital, and those prescribed in community and hospital pharmacy departments.

It was found that £20.2 billion was spent on medicines at list price between 2017 and 2018, a rise of 55 per cent compared to what was spent in 2010-2011, The Pharmacist reports.

NHS Digital noted that rising costs are because of new and innovative medicines, as well as greater use of specialist medicines. Among the 20 most expensive drugs appraised by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, apixaban, rivaroxaban and insulin glargine were mainly used in the community, with a total cost of about £449 million.

Global Health Now called on the government to be stronger in its approach to regulating the pharmaceutical industry and ensure that medicine bills are kept under better control, while ensuring people are not refused essential treatment.

“We treasure the principle of public healthcare for all, free at the point of use, but this is undermined by our system of privatised medicines. We have to question what is going wrong in this system and recognise that medicines are not luxury goods like handbags, but an urgent necessity,” campaigner Heidi Chow said.

An investigation by the Independent last year showed just how much of the NHS is being privatised, with the NHS in England making almost £584 million from private patients in 2016-2017, a rise of 29 per cent from 2011-2012.

But many of these private patients are being treated by medical professionals who work for the NHS and are using NHS beds.

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