West Kent clinical commissioning group (CCG) will stop the routine prescribing of gluten-free products from Friday (September 1), it confirmed in a statement on its website.

The only patients excluded from the prescription changes will be those with rare metabolism disorder phenylketonuria, who the CCG said need "specific low-protein food".

Kent LPC CEO Michael Keen told C+D yesterday (August 29) that his organisation does not "support the removal of some products from prescription, such as breads and things that people with coeliac disease need on an ongoing basis".

The "assumption" that "everyone can afford gluten-free products" is of "real concern", Mr Keen said.

“Most pharmacists take the view that I'm taking. We understand the NHS is in a bit of a fix and something does have to be done – but done within reason.”

However, the LPC does support scrapping funding for “fancy” gluten-free items, such as pizzas, which are available from supermarkets, he added.

According to the CCG, the gluten-free items being removed from prescriptions are fresh and long-life bread, flour mix, plain savoury crackers, pasta, and pure oats breakfast cereal.

“Not a decision we took lightly”

Announcing the plans, CCG chair Dr Bob Bowes said it was “not a decision we took lightly”.

The CCG is “very aware” of its duty to “do the best we can for the whole of our population”, but the conclusion had been reached due to its “financial position”, Dr Bowes explained. GPs in west Kent prescribed £137,000-worth of gluten-free food in 2016, the CCG said.

In addition, a CCG assessment showed that the “top users” of gluten-free food prescriptions were the “10% most affluent members of the population”, Dr Bowes added.

West Kent CCG was unable to comment further on its policy at time of going to press.

Coeliac UK “very concerned”

The chief executive of charity Coeliac UK, Sarah Sleet, argued that the CCG's claim about "the least affluent getting the fewest prescriptions" was "misleading".

Ms Sleet told C+D her organisation had told the CCG in March of its concerns, “because diagnosis rates for coeliac disease are lower in more socioeconomically deprived areas”.

Coeliac UK is “very concerned” about the impact of West Kent CCG’s decision, she continued, “particularly” for “vulnerable patients”.

“Those who can least afford it will be affected the most,” she stressed.

NHS England’s prescription agenda

In June, C+D hosted a roundtable debate with representatives from pharmacy, commissioning and Coeliac UK to discuss NHS England’s plans to scrap a range of products and services from prescriptions – including gluten-free foods.

You can listen to the full debate in the podcast below.