16.— (1) Subject to subsection (2), where a pharmacist who is working in a retail pharmacy business is presented with a prescription, by the patient for whom the prescription was issued or a person acting on behalf of the patient, for a medicinal product (not being an interchangeable medicinal product) under a common name, the pharmacist shall, for the purpose of that prescription, dispense from amongst the medicinal products which meet the requirements of that prescription and which the retail pharmacy business has in stock at the time the prescription is presented, that medicinal product which is of the lowest cost to the Executive (as specified in the Reimbursement List) or the patient, as the case may be.

(2) Where subsection (1) applies to a prescription but the patient for whom the prescription was issued or a person acting on behalf of the patient requests the pharmacist to dispense, from amongst the medicinal products which meet the requirements of the prescription and which the retail pharmacy business has in stock at the time the prescription is presented, a medicinal product other than the medicinal product which the pharmacist would, under subsection (1) and but for this subsection, be required to dispense, the pharmacist shall dispense the medicinal product the subject of the request.

(3) Sections 14 and 15 shall, with all necessary modifications, apply to this section as they apply to Part 2.

(4) Section 26 shall, with all necessary modifications, apply to this section as it applies to Chapter 2 of Part 2 .