Kevin Humphreys (Dublin South East, Labour)
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570. To ask the Minister for Health the number of drugs at present that must be compulsorily prescribed by international non-proprietary name; the number he expects to have under this system by the end of 2014; the total number of drugs currently covered by the Health Service Executive under various schemes that could be replaced by generics but are not compulsory; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53915/13]

Alex White (Dublin South, Labour)
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Currently, there are no drugs which must be compulsorily prescribed by the international non-proprietary name (INN), however, prescribers are encouraged to prescribe in a cost effective manner, including prescribing by INN, where appropriate.

As part of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Government and the Troika, the Prescription Regulations will be amended to provide for the mandatory inclusion of the INN on prescriptions. The inclusion of brand names will not be prohibited. The new regulations are expected to be completed by end Q1 in 2014.

The Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act 2013, which came into operation on the 24th of June, introduces a system of generic substitution and reference pricing. This legislation will promote price competition among suppliers and ensure that lower prices are paid for these medicines resulting in further savings for both taxpayers and patients. It is estimated that this system will yield €50 million in savings in 2014.

Under the Act, the Irish Medicines Board (IMB) is responsible for the assessment for interchangeability of medicines. Generic substitution will be introduced incrementally with the IMB prioritising those medicines which will achieve the greatest savings for patients and the State. The Board is in the process of reviewing an initial 20 active substances, which equates to approximately 1,500 individual medicines. They include statins, proton pump inhibitors, angiotensin-converting-enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and angiotensin II receptor blockers.

The first List of Interchangeable Medicines, containing groups of atorvastatin products, was published by the IMB on the 7th August. The IMB is updating the List of Interchangeable Medicines on an ongoing basis and it expects to complete the assessment of the top 20 priority medicines by end Quarter 2 2014. A further list of 20 priority products will then be identified and it is expected the IMB will have assessed this list by end 2014. The process will then continue until all relevant medicinal products on the reimbursable list have been assessed.

Under the Act, a pharmacist shall offer the patient the opportunity to agree to the pharmacist substituting the prescribed product for a substitute product (from within a group of interchangeable products) which is in stock and is the lowest cost to the patient or the State.