FOI-02846

Thank you for your request for information about the following: 

Request 

You asked us: 

I would like to request a re-run of a previous Freedom of Information request which you have kindly responded to. I would like to make a new request under the Freedom of Information Act, for the following data: The reference number for the previous request is https://opendata.nhsbsa.net/dataset/foi-02594 and we would like a re-run of this for the latest data, i.e. for the month of March 2025. 

Original Request

Dataset to include the following fields: NHS ODS Code for the Dispensing Appliance Contractor BNF Code for the product dispensed Snomed Code for the product dispensed (either AMP or AMPP Code) Year and month product dispensed (for example 202401 – for January 2024) Total items dispensed, Total Quantity Dispensed and Total NIC value for each item dispensed.

The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) received your request on 21 May 2025.  

We have handled your request under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 2000.  

##Our response 

I can confirm that the NHSBSA holds the information you have requested and a copy of the information and notes explaining it is attached. 

Please read the below notes to ensure correct understanding of the data. 

NHS Prescription Services process prescriptions for Pharmacy Contractors, Appliance Contractors, Dispensing Doctors and Personal Administration with information then used to make payments to pharmacists and appliance contractors in England for prescriptions dispensed in primary care settings (other arrangements are in place for making payments to Dispensing Doctors and Personal Administration). This involves processing over 1 billion prescription items and payments totalling over £9 billion each year. The information gathered from this process is then used to provide information on costs and trends in prescribing in England and Wales to over 25,000 registered NHS and Department of Health and Social Care users. 

##Data Source	 

The data source was the NHSBSA Information Services Data Warehouse.

##Time Period 

March 2025 

Please note drugs flagged in our database as Schedule 2 and 3 controlled drugs have been excluded from this dataset for information security reasons to prevent the identification of organisations with high levels of controlled drug dispensing. 

This data is limited to prescriptions prescribed in England and dispensed in either England, Scotland or Wales.

The dataset also excludes items supplied as part of a Pharmacy First consultation or service  

##Exclusions 

The Data excludes:  

•           Items not dispensed, disallowed and those returned to the contractor for further clarification.  

•           Prescriptions prescribed and dispensed in Prisons, Hospitals and Private prescriptions. 

•           Items prescribed but not presented for dispensing or not submitted to NHS Prescription Services by the dispenser. 

##Data Queries 

Please contact foirequests@nhsbsa.nhs.uk ensuring you quote the above reference if you have any specific questions regarding this response; or, if you feel you may be misunderstanding or misinterpreting the information; or, if you plan on publishing the data. 

##Reusing the data and copyright 

If you plan on producing a press or broadcast story based upon the data please contact communicationsteam@nhsbsa.nhs.uk. This is important to ensure that the figures are not misunderstood or misrepresented. 

The information supplied to you continues to be protected by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 and is subject to NHSBSA copyright. This information is licenced under the terms of the Open Government Licence detailed at: 

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/  

Should you wish to re-use the information you must include the following statement: “Data Warehouse, NHSBSA Copyright 2025”. Failure to do so is a breach of the terms of the licence. 

Information you receive which is not subject to NHSBSA Copyright continues to be protected by the copyright of the person, or organisation, from which the information originated. Please obtain their permission before reproducing any third party (non NHSBSA Copyright) information. 

Tags: Drug data, NHS Prescriptions
Organization: Freedom of Information Disclosure Log