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National Prescribing Centre to become part of NICE

By Laura Passi

A merger between the National Prescribing Centre and NICE has been approved by ministers.

The decision follows reforms outlined in the white paper, which had prompted discussions between the Department of Health and the NPC management team about the body's future activity.

The NPC is responsible for recommending how the NHS can save money when prescribing.

In a statement this week, the NPC said: 'We have concluded that there is a strong rationale for integrating the NPC's work into NICE, particularly given the launch of NHS Evidence and NPC's primary focus on securing better use of medicines.'

The final merger will take place from April 2011.