Doctors should no longer prescribe homeopathic medicine to NHS patients, the health service has said.
The change has been proposed because "at best, homeopathy is a placebo and a misuse of scarce NHS funds which could better be devoted to treatments that work", said Simon Stevens, NHS England's chief executive.
The NHS currently spends £92,412 a year on the natural “treatment”, which uses highly diluted doses of natural substances that some claim help the body heal itself.
Recommendations set out in a consultation document categorise homeopathy as a treatment with a “lack of robust evidence of clinical effectiveness” and says GPs should not give it to new patients in a drive to cut prescription costs. "Often patients are receiving medicines which have been proven to be ineffective or in some cases dangerous," says the document, noting there are often "more effective, safer and/or cheaper alternatives".
Last year 1.1 billion prescription items overall were signed off by GPs at a cost of £9.2bn – an amount health bosses have been tasked to reduce through increased scrutiny of the medicines provided.
The new national guidelines state that 18 treatments should generally not be prescribed and sets out action on limiting the prescribing of around 3,200 prescription items, such as eye drops, cough mixture and sun cream, that are commonly available over the counter in chemists and supermarkets.
Other treatments that could soon be banned by the NHS include herbal treatments, lidocaine plasters, omega-3 fatty acids and unlicensed use of the painkiller co-proxamol, which was withdrawn from the market in 2007 due to safety concerns. In March it was revealed that the cost-cutting plans could stop NHS doctors from providing travel vaccinations and prescriptions for hayfever tablets and gluten-free food for coeliacs.
Health services in Bristol is the lead commissioner for homeopathy for 13 local healthcare providers, said NHS England.
“The NHS is probably the world’s most efficient health service, but like every country there is still waste and inefficiency that we’re determined to root out," said Mr Stevens.
"The public rightly expects that the NHS will use every pound wisely, and today we’re taking practical action to free up funding to better spend on modern drugs and treatments."
