NHS releases report on dependency forming medicines

NHS Business Service Authority's (NHSBSA) 'Dependency Forming Medicines - England 2015/16 to 2022/23' report shows that in 2022/23, the cost of prescribed dependency forming medicines was £380 million. This was a 51% decrease from 2015/16 when the cost was £780 million.

The report includes data on four categories of medicines including Opioid pain medicine, Gabapentinoids (antiepileptic agents commonly used to treat neuropathic pain), Benzodiazepines (sedative medication) and ‘Z’ drugs (commonly used as sleeping aids). Some analysis also includes antidepressants. Full definitions are available in section 3 of the publication.

The key findings of the report also show that:

In 2022/23, there were 67 million items for dependency forming medicines prescribed in England, a 1% decrease from 2015/16.

Opioid drugs were the most prescribed dependency forming medicines in England in 2022/23 with 39 million items at a cost of £280 million. The total cost of opioid drugs has decreased by 33% since 2015/16 from £420 million.

There were 7.1 million identified patients that were prescribed dependency forming medicines in England in 2022/23. This was a 12% decrease from 8.1 million identified patients in 2015/16.

The most common group to receive prescribing for dependency forming medicines in 2022/23 was female patients aged 55 to 59 with 410,000 identified patients.

Areas of greater deprivation had the highest number of identified patients who were being prescribed dependency forming medication in 2022/23, with 56% more patients receiving prescribing in the most deprived areas of the country compared to the least deprived.

To read the full report go to: https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/statistical-collections/dependency-forming-medicines-england