- What
is the Government Formulary List?
The Government
Formulary List is a continually updated list of medicines and some borderline
products approved for use within the National Health Service.
- What
is the Hospital Formulary?
The Hospital
Formulary contains all the medicines and borderline products available within
the National Health Service for inpatient use and includes information on
authorised prescribers and authorised wards or areas within the hospital or
clinic.- What
is the Outpatients Formulary?
This
formulary lists the medicines available within the National Health Service for outpatient
use. Medicines listed here can be dispensed to patients in possession of a
Schedule V Card (Yellow Card) or a Schedule II Card (Pink Card) and according
to the criteria defined in the Formulary.- How
is the formulary updated and when?
The
formulary maintenance process is dependent on two key components:(a)
additions and deletions of medicines, and
(b) periodic
reviews.
Additions – New
treatment is handled by the Health
Technology Assessment Unit. The formulary is then updated when stock of
the new medicine is procured and available for dispensing.
Deletions – Medicines
that are no longer used or lack sufficient evidence of efficacy, safety, and
quality are recommended for deletion. At times, medicines that no longer meet
the criteria for being cost-effective are also evaluated and deleted when an
acceptable alternative is identified. The formulary is updated when all stock
of the deleted medicine has been exhausted. In the meantime, the medicine is
marked as officially deleted and available until stocks last.
Periodic
reviews – These involve the evaluation of a group of medicines. Requests
for review of eligibility criteria, prescribing criteria, etc. can also be
submitted by healthcare professionals and evaluated by the Formulary Management
Unit. The formulary is then updated approximately every 3 months.
- Where
can I view the formulary?
Both the
Outpatients Formulary and the Hospital Formulary can be viewed here.
- How
will I know what changes are made to the Formulary?
The latest
List of Changes can be viewed here.
- What
is entitlement for free treatment?
The Second Schedule and the Fifth Schedule of
the Social Security Act establish who can avail of free treatment listed on the
Outpatients Formulary. Patients are entitled to free treatment if they either:
- Suffer
from any one of the chronic conditions listed in the Fifth Schedule of the
above act and are in possession of a Schedule V Card (Yellow Card) for that
condition. Patients are only entitled to the treatment listed for that
condition as per outpatients formulary. OR
- Are
in possession of a Schedule II Card (Pink Card) and the treatment required is
marked as Pink Card Positive.
- What
are protocols and where can I find them?
For entitlement purposes, medicine
protocols outline the restricted use of certain medicinal products within the
National Health Services. The protocols can be viewed here.
- When will new
medicines be available?
New medicines are added to the formulary once it is
confirmed that stock is procured and available.
- How will I know that new medicines are now
available?
A circular is issued by the Chief Medical Officer to
inform that a new medicine (or a new indication) is now available for use. This
is uploaded onto our website under “Circulars and Memos”. The new treatment/new indication is added in real-time to the online
formularies and List of Changes when the circular is issued.
- How will I know whether my treatment is
listed on the Government Formulary List?
A search by
active ingredient can be carried out in the formularies available here.
Mapping is the process by which all items on the
Outpatients Formulary are linked to one or more chronic conditions listed in
the Fifth Schedule of the Social Security Act for which free treatment may be provided.
- What are
technical specifications for procurement?
Technical
specifications for procurement can be defined as a description of the required technical
characteristics for a product which is included in a procurement document that
a supplier must provide.
- Why and how
are technical specifications changed?
Requests for amendment of specifications can be submitted
from healthcare professionals. The Formulary Management Unit (FMU) also carries
out review exercises to ensure that the specifications allow fair competition
while identifying the users’ needs to provide safe and effective good quality
medicines. The FMU carries out the appropriate research and consults with the
relevant stakeholders as necessary.