Call for pharmacists to offer cheaper drug brands

Pharmacists should be able to offer patients cheaper drugs as an alternative to more expensive brands prescribed by GPs, experts have said.

The Economic and Social Research Institute (ERSI) has recommended that, provided two drugs have the same chemical properties and the same effect, patients should be able to choose which to buy.

Paul Gorecki, research professor at the think-tank, said this would save the Department of Health and the taxpayer money, and encourage competition in the pharmaceutical market.