Adjusted price for Cetirizine 1mg/ml oral solution sugar free following price changes in August 2021

During the month of August 2021, PSNC received several reports from contractors unable to obtain Cetirizine 1mg/ml oral solution sugar free (200ml) at the published Drug Tariff price of £6.49. PSNC submitted a request for a price concession but this was later withdrawn after confirmation from the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) that, due to the price change mechanism, the reimbursement price for Cetirizine 1mg/1ml oral solution sugar free increased from £6.49 to £11.24 for the month of August 2021.

Following the price change mechanism rules, for generic drugs (excluding drugs in Category M), a price change up to and including the 8th of the month takes effect for prescriptions dispensed in that same month. Any price change after the 8th takes place in the following month. For example, if a supplier’s list price changed on the 6th of August, the new reimbursement price would apply to prescriptions dispensed in August. If a supplier’s list price for a generic drug changed on the 15th August, the new reimbursement price would apply to prescriptions dispensed in September.

Cetirizine 1mg/1ml oral solution sugar free is listed in Category A of the Drug Tariff. Prices of drugs listed in Category A are based on a weighted average of the list prices from 2 mainline wholesalers and 2 generic manufacturers. An increase in mainline wholesaler prices early in August led to an adjustment to the reimbursement price for Cetirizine 1mg/1ml oral solution sugar free for August 2021. Any prescription for Cetirizine 1mg/1ml oral solution sugar free submitted for payment to the NHSBSA for the month of August 2021 will be reimbursed at the new price of £11.24 for 200ml. Contractors should note that the published Drug Tariff for September 2021 reflects the updated price of Cetirizine 1mg/1ml oral solution sugar free.