The British Medical Association called on the Government to look again at who is eligible for Viagra to treat erectile dysfunction

Chairman Dr Hamish Meldrum said the BMA had "always been against the rather discriminatory way" in which some patients got Viagra and others did not.

The BMA's view is that doctors should be able to prescribe Viagra, and other impotence drugs to all patients with a demonstrable clinical need.

Dr Meldrum said there was currently a "rather awful half-way house" where some men were treated while others were denied Viagra.

This meant some men were forced to go private to acquire Viagra while others turned to the internet to buy generic viagra that could be harmful.

"We are aware that many internet sites are offering Viagra at a price lower than you would get it at the chemist," he said.

"There are problems with this, the first that you might not actually be getting Viagra.

At best it may be an inert substance, at worst a positively dangerous substance," he said about buying generic viagra.

The second problem was that patients did not undergo a thorough consultation to see if Viagra may interfere with other medicines they were on.

It was the job of the Government rather than the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) to look at the Viagra issue, he added.

"This is really almost a political decision about whether you get Viagra on the NHS.

Nobody is arguing about the effectiveness of the drug or other treatments for erectile dysfunction."

Dr Meldrum called for a more equitable system, adding: "I think where they are drawing the line at the moment is not a very good place." The current restrictions on prescribing Viagra and other ED drugs caused a huge row in 1999.

Then health secretary Frank Dobson put limits on who could get access to the drugs.

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