Proposals to increase the prescription of cheaper generic medicines in primary care have been set out in England.

The Department of Health is keen to use more generic medicines as they are less costly than the branded equivalent.

The suggestions include establishing a list of products for substitution, and another list of items that would be exempt. The proposals will be put out for public consultation over the next 12 weeks.

The NHS spends about £9bn a year on branded prescription medicines in the UK.

A five-year voluntary agreement negotiated between government and the pharmaceutical industry last year, includes measures aimed at reducing NHS expenditure on branded medicines by an average of 5% a year over the lifetime of the scheme.

Generic medicines - which must contain the same active ingredient as the branded originals, and can be marketed once the originator’s patent protection has expired - can save substantial costs.

Currently, around 83% of prescriptions issued by the NHS are for generic drugs, but ministers want this to rise by around 5%.

Read more at BBC Health.