A deal worth hundreds of millions has finally broken a year-long deadlock between the government and community pharmacies over providing key health services across England.
Ministers hope that it will allow pharmacists to deal with many medical issues and, as a result, free up GP time for more serious problems, although the National Pharmacy Association (NPA) warned the funding fell a “long way short of the NHS’s own estimates” of the true cost of providing pharmacy services.
Speaking exclusively to The Independent, health minister Stephen Kinnock described the contract agreed between the government and Community Pharmacy England as an important step to fixing “a broken pharmacy sector”.
He praised The Independent’s coverage of the pharmacy crisis highlighting “a tsunami of closures”.
The deal will mean that the morning-after pill for women will be free of charge across the whole country for the first time in history, ending the postcode lottery.
Pharmacies have been threatening to work to rule over funding. Added to that, late last year the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) revealed there were 1,200 fewer pharmacies than in 2017.
With a growing crisis in pharmacy provision in England, the previous Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework (CPCF) ran out in March last year, but Rishi Sunak’s Tory government had been unable to agree a new one before the election.
After nine months of further talks, Sir Keir Starmer’s government finally agreed a deal worth an extra £617m over two years following a six-week consultation with the organisation.
On top of this, the government is writing off £193m of debt for community pharmacy owners to give them confidence going into the new financial year on 1 April.
Nick Kaye, chairman of the NPA, told the PA news agency: “After a decade of 40 per cent cuts to their funding that has left the pharmacy network on its knees, it is good to see a concrete sign that ministers want to support pharmacies.
“No one wants to reduce services through protest action so we’ll look carefully at the detail and consult our members, who are facing substantial cost increases from April 1, to understand what this means for the future of their services so we can recommend next steps.
“The government inherited an intolerable situation after more than a decade of real-terms cuts and today’s settlement is a step forward. However, the truth is that because of a decade of neglect, it also falls a long way short of the NHS’s own estimates of the true cost of providing pharmacy services.”
Mr Kinnock who led the talks hailed the breakthrough for providing certainty and being a key part in tackling health provision in England.
He told The Independent: “Today marks an important next phase for our vital community pharmacies and the millions of Independent readers that rely on them every day. We’re committing a record £3bn to help patients access vital new services in convenient locations closer to home.
“This important investment is backed by crucial reforms delivering real benefits for patients. It’s all part of our ambitious drive to move care away from overloaded hospitals and into our communities, making it easier for people to get the support they need right on their local high street.
“It means that, from later this year, women will be able to get the morning-after pill free of charge over the counter for the first time, ending the postcode lottery of access and charges of up to £30.”
He noted that patients on newly prescribed antidepressants will have better access to important follow-up care as a result of the deal, improving their chances of recovery and, in many cases, getting back into work whilst also easing pressure on GP surgeries.
He added: “People needing treatment for a range of common conditions will find it easier to get help on their local high street.
“But, importantly, it is a first step on our mission to revive a vital cornerstone of community healthcare left on the brink of collapse by a decade of underfunding and neglect.”
He claimed that Labour “inherited a broken pharmacy sector as laid bare by The Independent over previous years. Closures have been rife, patients forgotten, and pharmacy owners left buried in red tape and bureaucracy.
“But since taking office, we have been working to turn that situation around. We’re shifting the focus of healthcare out of hospitals and back into the community through our Plan for Change to rebuild the health service and improve living standards for everyone across the country. We’ve started by resetting the government’s relationship with community pharmacies, delivering today the first funding package approved by the sector in over three years.”
Mr Kinnock insisted: “We are determined to continue working closely with our pharmacists as they deliver more services for patients, freeing up GP appointments and cutting NHS waiting times.”
The investment comes alongside reforms to deliver a raft of patient benefits, as part of the government’s agenda to shift the focus of care from hospitals into the community, so people can more easily access care and support on their high streets.
The greater range of services provided is not only meant to improve access for patients but also cut waiting lists by reducing the need for people to see their GPs. Other measures include:
- Making the morning-after pill available free of charge at pharmacies on the NHS for the first time ever, ending the postcode lottery women face in accessing the medicine and reducing inequalities.
- Offering patients suffering depression convenient support at pharmacies when they are prescribed antidepressants, to boost mental health support in the community.
- Cutting red tape and bureaucracy to give patients easier access to consultations, with more of the pharmacy team able to deliver a wider number of services, such as medicines and prescriptions advice, Pharmacy First services, and carrying out blood pressure checks.
- Boosting financial incentives for pharmacists to identify patients with undiagnosed high blood pressure and take pressure off GPs.
- Boosting funding for medicine supply so patients have better access to the medicines prescribed for them. This includes writing off the historic debt linked to dispensing activity during the pandemic and increasing fees linked to dispensing prescriptions.
