CASH-STRAPPED health service bosses in Bradford could save more than £320,000 a year if they scrapped gluten-free food prescriptions.

Clinical Commission Groups’ chiefs say the saving could be spent on other services to benefit more patients across the district and would be the equivalent of about 40 hip operations, 40 coronary artery bypass procedures or 200 days use of an intensive care bed.

Details of that proposal and other possible changes in a bid to help save Bradford City and Bradford Districts CCGs £13m in 2016/17 will be outlined to the Council’s Health and Social Care Overview and Scrutiny Committee when it meets next Thursday.

Michelle Turner, director of nursing and quality for the two CCGs, will tell members next week the gluten-free proposal will be one of the first actions it tackles. Although it might not get the backing of patients currently receiving those food prescriptions, there will not be an impact on the quality of clinical care they get, she will report.

The committee will hear that the NHS has been prescribing gluten-free food for more than 30 years but it much more expensive for the NHS to supply than it is for patients to buy them, for example gluten-free flour can cost the NHS up to four times more than it costs in supermarkets, and bread can cost double of a supermarket gluten-free loaf.

The report to the committee states: “We considered how we can use our prescribing budget in the most effective and equitable way to improve the health of our whole population.

“We could invest the money we spend on gluten-free prescribing, over £320,000 on other services which would benefit more patients. This is the equivalent cost of about 40 hip operations or 40 coronary artery bypass procedures, or 200 days use of an intensive care bed.”

Yesterday, the T&A reported on a £43m black hole in the budgets of local health services.

Dr Sohail Abbas and Dr Carsten Grimm, the CCGs’ clinical leads for prescribing, told the Telegraph & Argus: “Unfortunately in the current economic climate with rising demand on healthcare services, we have to make difficult decisions and it is important that we involve our people and public to support us in this process.”

“We understand that a decision to change or stop the prescribing of gluten-free foods will impact on people in different ways; so we are keen to hear the views of patients, carers, the wider public, together with our clinicians, so that we are fully aware of the likely impact of the proposals, before making a final decision.”

The CCGs will contact people on gluten-free foods on prescription via their GP practices and through Coeliac UK.

A three-month public consultation is running until September 30.

It includes drop-in sessions on Tuesday, August 9 from 3pm to 4.30pm at Windhill Community Centre in Shipley, on Tuesday, August 23 from 6.30pm to 8pm at Frizinghall Community Centre in Midland Road and on Wednesday, September 7 from 3pm to 4.30pm at Park Lane Centre, Bradford.

Ideas being aired as part of the consultation will be the CCGs recommending and supporting GPs to stop providing gluten-free food on prescription; to only prescribe gluten-free food for patients aged under 16 years and to support voluntary and community services organisations to supply gluten-free products at lower cost through their community outlets.