Petition · Department of Health and Social Care
Review the sale of over the counter codeine
Closed
292 signatures
What the petition asks
A review could explore the feasibility of a system in which a notification is sent through to the patient's GP surgery. This way, there'd be a better audit trail for how many times someone purchases this medication. This could then be looked at if the patient is buying the medication regularly.
I believe the current system for buying over the counter codeine is flawed. It seems easy to buy as I feel there isn't an effective audit trail. I think this could be contributing to opioid addictions. I believe that the pharmacy and the manufacturer have a duty of care to all patients purchasing this medication and that the system should be tightened up in order to help stop the misuse of codeine. I think this could ultimately save lives.
Timeline
| 7 Aug 2025 | Petition opened for signatures |
| 7 Feb 2026 | Closed to new signatures |
Key facts
Signatures
292
Status
Closed
Department
Department of Health and Social Care
Opened
7 Aug 2025
Closed
7 Feb 2026
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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 6 Aug 2026.