Overview

• The government published proposals under its Plan for Change to let optometrists and contact lens opticians supply a wider range of prescription-only medicines in high street settings.
• The draft list names acetylcysteine for refractory dry eye; diclofenac sodium for post‑cataract pain or seasonal allergic conjunctivitis; azithromycin and gentamicin for bacterial infections; and azelastine, ketotifen, olopatadine, and lodoxamide for allergic eye disease.
• Practitioners could sign off prescription-only treatments in emergencies or for dispensing at local pharmacies, including for suspected acute angle closure glaucoma and to support removal of foreign bodies.
• Atropine sulphate and homatropine hydrobromide would be available to relax the eye for accurate testing in children, potentially reducing hospital visits for sight tests.
• Health minister Stephen Kinnock backed the changes as expanding community care capacity, the College of Optometrists welcomed the plans, and the measures remain proposals pending consultation, regulatory amendments, and commissioning.