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Prescription Drugs: Misuse

Asked by Jim ShannonDemocratic Unionist PartyDepartment of Health and Social CareTabled Answered 25 March 2025UIN 38583

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of trends in the level of misuse of prescription drugs.

Answered by Karin Smyth

The Department has made no such assessment. We are unable to assess trends in this area because there is no universal definition of prescription only medicine misuse, and data is not routinely collected, particularly for patients using medication without a prescription, or outside recommended prescribing parameters.

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