EDITOR,—A major drive towards generic prescribing is occurring in the NHS on the premise that generic products deliver equally effective results while yielding an appreciable saving on costs. We have reservations about the use of generic inhalers for asthma on both counts. In November last year the NHS Supplies Authority arranged a contract for generic inhalers for asthma and at the same time wrote to the chief executives of all NHS trusts, urging them to ignore approaches from their clinicians on the grounds that they may have been influenced by the manufacturers of branded products. The letter included the statement, “there is no doubt after stringent tests by our [quality control] that the generic product is equally effective with the Allen and Hanburys products.” This statement must be called into question since adequate data on …