Prescribed Antidepressants in England, Double in a Decade.

Patients in England given antidepressants has doubled in a decade, official figures show.

The total number of antidepressants prescribed in 2005 was at £31.6 million, according to a report by the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC).

In 2015 there were £61 million of the drugs prescribed outside of hospitals. The pills are used to treat depression as well as other conditions such as generalised anxiety disorders, OCD and even panic attacks.

The cost of ingredients of antidepressants, before any money reclaimed by the NHS, was nearly £285 million last year. About 9 in 10 of all medicines are dispensed to people eligible for free prescriptions.

Drugs used for diabetes cost the NHS, in the same year, the most under the same measure, at nearly £837 million. In all more than £1.08 billion prescription items were dispensed in 2015. This is an increase of over 50% in a decade.

The rise of antidepressants prescribed are persistent with the upward trend across the UK, amid concerns about mental health.

SOURCE: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/jul/05/antidepressant-prescriptions-in-england-double-in-a-decade

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