James Leonard
Ceist:17 Mr. Leonard asked the Minister for Health if he has satisfied himself with the percentage of generic drugs being used in the health service as against brand-named drugs. [5351/95]
Written Answers. - Generic Drug Prescribing.
, Limerick East): In considering the matter of generic prescribing it must be realised that not all drugs have generic equivalents. Approximately 68 per cent of expenditure on the GMS scheme relates to products for which there are no generic equivalent products on the market. An examination of prescribing in 1992, showed that the ingredient cost of generic products dispensed on the general medical services scheme — GMS — amounted to £9.322 million or 8.8 per cent of total expenditure on the scheme.
Generic dispensing in 1993 accounted for £11.807 million or 31.7 per cent of the value of expenditure on the product categories where a generic equivalent is available. The equivalent figures for 1994 were £15.22 million or 42 per cent. These amounts represented 11 per cent and 13.5 per cent respectively of total expenditure on the scheme. It can be seen, therefore, that there has been a steady increase in generic dispensing on the scheme over the last three years.