February 2021 in numbers
NHS community prescribing in England (Prescription Cost Analysis).
85,529,074items
Dispensed in February 2021
NHSBSA Prescription Cost Analysis
£744,287,381
Net ingredient cost, February 2021
NHSBSA PCA
Most-dispensed medicines
Download full month (CSV)| Medicine | Items | Net ingredient cost |
|---|---|---|
| Atorvastatin | 3,947,977 | £6,859,984 |
| Omeprazole | 2,717,361 | £7,241,645 |
| Levothyroxine sodium | 2,558,343 | £5,559,388 |
| Amlodipine | 2,496,039 | £3,298,296 |
| Lansoprazole | 2,363,300 | £4,007,920 |
| Ramipril | 2,313,199 | £3,520,456 |
| Bisoprolol fumarate | 2,008,383 | £2,304,562 |
| Colecalciferol | 1,937,019 | £7,418,645 |
| Metformin hydrochloride | 1,790,401 | £9,148,516 |
| Aspirin | 1,630,710 | £1,917,509 |
| Salbutamol | 1,540,279 | £3,993,689 |
| Sertraline hydrochloride | 1,530,749 | £11,883,268 |
Biggest risers
Largest month-on-month rise in items (medicines above 10,000 items).
| Medicine | Items | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Adapalene | 15,816 | +12.3% |
| Sodium fluoride | 103,863 | +11.6% |
| Famotidine | 46,448 | +11.5% |
| Fluorouracil (Sunscreen) | 13,042 | +6.7% |
| Varenicline tartrate | 19,626 | +4.8% |
| Metronidazole | 19,977 | +4.5% |
| Hydrocortisone acetate | 38,631 | +3.3% |
| Lymphoedema Garments | 29,810 | +2.8% |
Biggest fallers
Largest month-on-month fall in items.
| Medicine | Items | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Influenza | 261,261 | −53.1% |
| Pneumococcal | 17,535 | −35.5% |
| Doxycycline hyclate | 194,669 | −22.9% |
| Midazolam hydrochloride | 22,295 | −20.1% |
| Levomepromazine hydrochloride | 10,778 | −15.9% |
| Amoxicillin | 441,423 | −15.5% |
| Tracheostomy & Laryngectomy Appliances | 13,362 | −15.5% |
| Water for injection | 17,763 | −14.9% |
Download this data
Every medicine dispensed in February 2021 is in this month's CSV. For the full monthly history — the national headline series, and the top 500 medicines ranked in every month — see the headline series and most-prescribed medicines datasets in our open data catalogue.