A NATIONAL NHS drugs scandal exposed by a leading Barrow pharmacist is to be tackled by the government.

Barrow pharmacist Ben Merriman spotted a loophole that allows greedy pharmaceutical firms to hike up the cost of unbranded medicines - stripping millions of pounds from the cash-strapped health service.

The practice is estimated to have taken £250m from the NHS in the last 12 months alone - with £1.3m being drained from Cumbria's drugs budget.

But a strict clampdown is now on the cards thanks to Mr Merriman's brave whistleblowing - as the Department of Health moves to ban the act with a change in the law.

RELATED ARTICLE: NHS medicines loophole costs Cumbria £1.3 million

If successful, the National Health Service Act 2006 will be amended with new legislation to impose limits on the costs of generic drugs where there is no competition to keep prices down.

Mr Merriman, a member of Cumbria's area prescribing committee, said changing legislation to ban the practice was the most effective way to stop firms leeching money from the NHS in the long term.

"This practice has been nothing short of a gross exploitation of the NHS - a publicly funded service which has to do the greatest amount of good with a limited amount of funds.

"These few firms have been caught with their hand in the cookie jar but have continued to take as much from the NHS as they can. It's appalling.

"Profit for firms that develop new drugs is a good thing - it covers the cost and rewards them for bringing new drugs to market.

"But the few companies in question here do nothing for the greater good.

"I'm glad the government has listened and is changing legislation to stop this," Mr Merriman added.

RELATED ARTICLE: Government U-turn on pharmacy cuts welcomed

The practice saw around 70 products subject to hyperinflation - including fusidic acid eye drops, used to treat conjunctivitis, which rose from £2.69 per bottle in 2012 to £29.06 per bottle last year - a mark up of 1,080 per cent.

Substantially cheaper alternatives are available on the market.

Meanwhile, the cost of medicines still under patent are regulated by the government with caps imposed on the amount of profit large research and development-focussed pharmaceutical companies can make.

Consultation is to be undertaken on the new parliamentary bill next summer in the hope the National Health Service Act can be amended later in 2017.

The Department of Health states: "The government intends to use this power to limit the price of unbranded medicines where competition in the market fails and companies charge the NHS unreasonably high prices for generic medicines."

Mr Merriman said: "Making legislative changes may take some time but it is the right way to go about stopping this disgusting exploitation of NHS funds."

READ MORE: New hospital pharmacy will line shareholders pockets, critics claim