9 August 2016

The articles across today’s media in relation to the cost of gluten-free prescribing are sensationally reporting on what is actually an extremely low cost NHS patient support. The cost of gluten-free food to the NHS has gone down to £169 per diagnosed patient per year and bridges the gap between problems of availability and the cost of gluten-free products. As shown in the figures reported, the greatest spend is on bread which, gram for gram, is six times more expensive in our supermarkets and a key staple to our diets. With the cost of gluten-free food static or increasing, this represents cost reduction to the NHS in support of a long term condition and the avoidance of much more expensive health complications such as osteoporosis, infertility and small bowel cancer. Most of the costs reported and attributed to biscuits are for savoury biscuits and crackers which we know are easier to eat than soft breads by the elderly with dentures. The articles fail to mention that prescriptions aren’t free in England unless patients are exempt for other reasons and that the NHS should be looking at ways to improve its procurement and reduce the cost it pays, rather than putting budgets ahead of patient need.