Movement in Category M

There’s some good news ahead in the form of a 1.8 per cent increase in Category M reimbursement in the next quarter.

Although the rise sounds marginal, it equates to an extra £7.9 million being added in the category between July and September, an annualised amount of £31.9m. This includes a 6.1 per cent increase in reimbursement across the core category M range – products that have been in the category since its inception.

Fifteen new products have entered the category this quarter, including flucloxacillin oral solution (sugared) and mometasone nasal spray, and one product has been removed. This takes the total number of products in the category to 559, of which 310 will be reimbursed at a higher rate than the previous quarter. Meanwhile, 222 will fetch a lower level of reimbursement and the remaining 27 products experience no change.

The biggest winners this quarter are mebeverine 135mg tablets, for which reimbursement increases 209 per cent (see What’s hot, below) and hydroxocobalamin 1mg/1ml solution for injection ampoules, which experience a 136 per cent increase.

At the other end of the spectrum, the biggest loser is the recent entrant into the category – flucloxacillin 125mg/5ml oral solution – for which reimbursement falls 76 per cent (see What’s not, below). Ibuprofen 600mg tablets and amorolfine 5% medicated nail lacquer both experience a decrease of 58 per cent.