Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee expects the next round of negotiations to set the arrangements for the Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework (CPCF) in 2022/23 - Year 4 of the five-year CPCF deal, to begin soon.
The negotiator held a meeting on November 24 and 25 to discuss the burning issues affecting the sector and to plan for upcoming negotiations with the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and NHS England and NHS Improvement (NHSE&I).
It aims to complete these negotiations by April, allowing ample time for contractors to make arrangement prior to the beginning of the financial year.
PSNC vice-chair, and independent contractor, Bharat Patel said the entire sector is worried about the "outlook for pharmacies as we head into a difficult winter," and is working to find solutions.
He noted that PSNC "will be bringing proposals for additional funding and support, particularly around the treatment of 'walk-in' patients, to the table, along with a heavy dose of realism for government and the NHS about the current challenges in the sector."
While expecting a difficult round of discussion with the government, Patel remained optimistic about a favourable outcome for pharmacies.
The recent industrial action by junior doctors and hospital dental trainees, which is considered the longest strike in NHS history, caused a significant
impact on the NHS services.
Data published by NHS England showed that 113,779 inpatient and outpatient appointments were rescheduled due to the strike, which began on Wednesday 3 January
at 7.00am and finished at 7.00am on Tuesday 9 January.
Junior doctors make up around half of all doctors in the health service, but 25,446 staff remained absent from work at the peak of the last week's latest action.
The ongoing dispute between junior doctors and government over the 2022/23 pay award has disrupted more than one million hospital appointments so far.
The junior doctors' strike in December 2023 impacted 86,329 hospital appointments, and their previous action in October saw over 86,000 appointments cancelled.
The government's 200 million dental recovery plan has come under fierce criticism from the opposition party after health minister Dame Andrea Leadsom
admitted that there is a "high likelihood" that it will not deliver 2.5 million dental appointments.
Published last month, the plan is aimed at ensuring easier and faster access to NHS dental care across England, with up to 1.5 million extra treatments expected
to be delivered over the next 12 months. Various new measures were set out to attract new dentists, including increasing dental training places by up to
40 per cent by 2032, as part of the NHS Long Term Workforce Plan.
On Tuesday, Leadsom told MPs on the Health and Social Care Committee that the figure was based on NHS modelling of a "complicated set of factors" and there
is "quite a high likelihood of not being reliable as is the case with all modelling."
Preeti Kaur Gill MP, shadow minister for primary care and public health, expressed shock over the admission by the public health minister that there is
uncertainty regarding the plan's ability to deliver on its promises, which she said: "shows the Conservatives are out of ideas and out of time."
In a decisive move highlighting the financial strain faced by community pharmacies, the National Pharmacy Association (NPA) submitted a £108 million invoice
to the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) today (16 May).
According to the NPA, this substantial sum represents the amount that pharmacies in England personally covered for the dispensing of NHS medicines last month, as a
result of inadequate funding.
"The £108m figure is an average monthly figure based on the loss to pharmacy incomes over the past decade," it said.
The association believes that mass closures can be prevented only when the government stops expecting pharmacies to subsidise the cost of delivering NHS care.
NPA chief executive Paul Rees, said: "The soaring costs of dispensing medicine coupled with declining real terms funding has led to community pharmacies in
England having to subsidise the dispensing of drugs to the tune of £108m a month.
The British Generic Medicines Association (BGMA) has called for exemption from the Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicines Pricing and Access (VPAS), an
agreement between the UK Government, NHS England, and the pharmaceutical industry for branded generics and biosimilars.
"Due to the rising rate of VPAS on top of existing competition, manufacturers are finding the additional levy economically unviable given their already low prices,"
the association said.
According to research by the Office of Health Economics OHE and Professor Alistair McGuire (LSE) the rising rate of VPAS will force manufacturers pull out of the
market which may lead to prices rise due to a lack of competition and critical savings to the NHS will be lost.
The new study stated that Government levy on medicines designed to increase access to new treatments and promote affordability could actually be denying the NHS
billions of pounds of annual savings due to the impact it is having on branded generics and biosimilars.
The Health and Social Care Select Committee (HSCC) on Tuesday held the first session in their pharmacy inquiry, with a panel of experts discussing the key
issues facing community pharmacies in the country.
Representatives from community pharmacy associations highlighted some of their biggest challenges and their vision for the future, as well as actions that
government and NHS England can take to address those challenges for a better future for the sector.
Opening the session, the Committee's vice-chair, Rachel Maskell MP, asked the representatives if they felt the government was ambitious enough in what it
believes community pharmacy can do to address NHS pressures, or are pharmacists being held back by issues around workforce funding, contracting, and technological
changes.
Malcolm Harrison, Chief Executive, Company Chemists' Association (CCA), expressed that the government is not ambitious enough, saying "there's always opportunity
to be more ambitious".
Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC) has asked the government and the NHS to give more support to all community pharmacies as they gear up for "an extremely challenging winter period."
During talks with NHS England and NHS Improvement (NHSE&I) and the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) last week, PSNC highlighted that contractors are already under pressure because of workforce crisis, capacity issues and escalated staffing costs.
all these factors could pose a bigger challenge during the busy winter season, it said.
Though PSNC supported the government's aim on booster vaccinations and approval of more pharmacy sites, it expressed concerns over the impact of the vaccination drive on all community pharmacies.
To ease the pressure on pharmacies, the negotiator has sought additional support through regulatory measures, the removal of administrative burdens and changes
to the current Pharmacy Quality Scheme (PQS).
"We need to fix the front door to our NHS by investing in community pharmacy," asserts Daisy Cooper as more and more pharmacies "worry about the future of
their business."
Reflecting on the challenges faced by pharmacists during the pandemic, she emphasised their pivotal role in launching vaccination schemes across communities and
the larger role pharmacies play in complementing traditional NHS facilities.
Cooper recalls her collaboration with local pharmacies in St. Albans, where she worked hand in glove with them to address challenges faced by pharmacists to obtain
information from NHS England regarding protocols and procedures.
She told Pharmacy Business reporter that she had to work out something "hand in glove to help them get those vaccinated schemes up and running, as pharmacies were
desperate to take part in the vaccination scheme" in her constituency.
Describing their unique selling point (USP), Cooper emphasised the convenience and immediacy of pharmacies located in high street areas and warned that pharmacy
closures "should be a real wake up call for the government."
A new Attention-Deficit-Hyperactive disorder (ADHD) taskforce has been launched by National Health Services England (NHSE) to counter the challenges faced
by many suffering from the neurodevelopmental condition.
The ADHD taskforce aligns with the NHS Long Term Plan's vision to revolutionise mental health services, with a specific emphasis on bolstering community-based
care and reducing reliance on inpatient services.
The NHS has partnered with the government to tackle the escalating demands including increasing funding, improving system efficiency, altering the service
provision model, and clinical prioritisation by bringing together expertise from across a broad range of sectors, including the NHS, education and justice,
to help provide a joined-up approach in response to concerns around rising demand.
Over the past two decades, there has been a significant expansion in the acknowledgement and successful medical interventions for ADHD, leading to a steady
rise in clinical requests throughout the UK.
Thousands of cancer patients in England are set to gain fast-tracked access to personalised cancer vaccine trials through a new National Health Service(NHS)
initiative, the Cancer Vaccine Launch Pad.
This groundbreaking service aims to find new life-saving treatments by matching eligible patients with clinical trials across the country.
The first patient to receive a personalised vaccine for bowel cancer is Elliot Phebve, a 55-year-old lecturer, treated at University Hospitals Birmingham NHS
Foundation Trust.
Phebve, diagnosed through a routine health check, underwent surgery and chemotherapy before joining the trial.
Sponsored by German biotech company BioNTech SE, the colorectal cancer vaccine trial is one of several taking place across NHS trusts.
The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) has laid out a series of urgent actions it wants the newly elected Labour government to
implement within its first 100 days in office.
Among the top priorities, the ABPI has emphasised the urgent need to appoint a new Chair and Chief Executive for the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory
Agency (MHRA).
Additionally, the ABPI has urged the new government to launch the Life Sciences Manufacturing Capital Grants Facility without delay.
Other measures the ABPI wants Labour to prioritise include:
Rapidly passing outstanding UK clinical trials legislation to enhance the UK's attractiveness for inward investment, including into research within the NHS.
Increasing commercial flexibility in the NHS England Commercial Framework for New Medicines to remove barriers for companies to launch new medicines and indications
so that NHS patients can access the latest innovative medicines.
The Health and Social Care Secretary has announced over £175 million funding to boost genomics research in the UK.
Through this funding, the government aims to create the most advanced genomic healthcare system in the world.
"Patients with cancer and children born with treatable rare genetic diseases are set to benefit from earlier diagnosis and faster access to treatment, following a
£175 million boost to cutting-edge genomics research announced by the Health and Social Care Secretary today (Tuesday)," said DHSC.
The funding will enable research which could deliver world-leading genomic healthcare to patients, which involves the study of people's DNA.
"£105 million to be funded to kickstart a world-leading research study, led by Genomics England in partnership with the NHS, to explore the effectiveness of using
whole genome sequencing to find and treat rare genetic diseases in newborn babies," said DHSC.
"An initial £26 million to support an innovative cancer programme, led by Genomics England in partnership with the NHS, to evaluate cutting-edge genomic sequencing
technology to improve the accuracy and speed of diagnosis for cancer patients and use artificial intelligence to analyse a person's DNA, alongside other information
such as routine scans.
The UK government's community diagnostic centre programme, which was first launch in July 2021, is helping cut waiting lists, and speed up diagnoses and
treatments for NHS patients.
As of November 2023, a total of 6.1 million vital checks have been carried out at community diagnostic centres (CDCs) across England, according to a joint statement
released by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and NHS England.
Under the £2.3 billion programme, 141 CDCs have been opened across the country in a variety of settings including shopping centres, university campuses and football
stadiums, offering patients a wide range of diagnostic tests closer to home.
The government has set a target to open 160 CDCs by March 2025, with many expected to open ahead of schedule.
The Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC) has called the 'new general practice contract' which was imposed by NHS England on Monday (6 March)
as 'simply unreasonable'.
The imposition of new contract followed a failed talk of British Medical Association (BMA)'s with the negotiator. The association's main issue with the contract is
the lack of further funding beyond that agreed in 2019 as part of the five-year deal.
PSNC Chief Executive Janet Morrison said: "The breakdown in GP contract negotiations for the second year running is another blow for primary care. The verdict of the
GP negotiators is that the demands being made of doctors by Government and the NHS are simply unreasonable."
"Community pharmacy is being treated with the same disregard: too much is being asked of us, with far too little funding available."
The committee has been raising the issue and challenges faced by the community pharmacists with the government. The government is asking pharmacies to do more by
taking giving additional services but the committee is of view with no extra funding the community pharmacies will collapse.
The Community Pharmacy England (CPE) has called the recent announcement of six per cent pay rise for the public sector workforce as 'unfair' for the
community pharmacy sector.
On Thursday (13 June), the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) announced that pay scales for most doctors and dentists will increase by at least a
six per cent this year after the government accepted the recommendations from the independent pay review bodies in full.
Responding to the recent announcement Chief Executive Janet Morrison, said: "The public sector workforce pay rise will be welcome news for its recipients given
the huge inflationary pressures and the ongoing impact of the cost-of-living crisis. But for community pharmacy owners - who have faced 30% funding cuts in recent
years and who are struggling to meet their rising wage costs - this feels unfair, and very far from good news.
At Community Pharmacy England we are fully focused on the current financial and operational pressures and fighting hard for a sustainable long-term funding
arrangement.
Community Pharmacy England has published new guidance to help members to complete the 2022/23 Data Security and Protection Toolkit (DSPTK).
The Toolkit is used to make a pharmacy's information governance (IG) declaration and the deadline is Friday (30 June).
Community Pharmacy England collaborated with the NHS DSPTK team to keep the workload associated with Toolkit completion manageable whilst maintaining the
appropriate data security protections.
Key differences in this year's Toolkit include- improvements to the Toolkit's layout; improvements to the question wording and pharmacy-specific tips; and the
Toolkit displays the answers submitted by the pharmacy in the previous submission for various questions, allowing pharmacy owners to simply confirm that the
information remains accurate and adjust this if necessary.
The NHS Parent Organisation Code (POC) headquarters (HQ) batch submission feature also continues to enable to allow pharmacy owners (that own three or more
pharmacies) to complete a single submission for all their premises.
Politicians, researchers and pharmacy leaders called on the government to make community pharmacy a fundamental part of clinical services at an event at the
House of Commons on Wednesday (13).
At the launch of a research publication carried out by the University of Bath in conjunction with Sigma Pharmaceuticals, community pharmacy was described as
an "essential pillar of health care provision" in the UK.
The aim of this research was to provide evidence to support a strategy for the future developments of community pharmacy to ensure the sector continues to meet
the needs of the public in the NHS.
Researchers analysed 25 health and community pharmacy related policies published by the department of health, the NHS, the pharmacy profession, and spoke to
stakeholders from a wide range of backgrounds, including patients, pharmacists, NHS commissioners and GPS.
As part of a new blueprint for primary care, the government today (May 9) announced an investment of £645 million over two years to expand community pharmacy
services in England.
In a statement, NHS England said: "For the first time ever, patients who need prescription medication will be able to get it directly from a pharmacy, without a
GP appointment, for seven common conditions including earache, sore throat, or urinary tract infections."
Prime minister Rishi Sunak hopes that the measures will help end the "all-too stressful wait on the end of the phone for patients" by freeing up 15 million slots at
doctors' surgeries over the next two years.
"We will end the 8am rush and expand the services offered by pharmacies, meaning patients can get their medication quickly and easily," he said
Almost half a million women will no longer need to speak to a practice nurse or GP to access oral contraception and will instead be able to pop into their local
pharmacy for it, according to the government announcement.
Blood checks for people suffering from moderate risk of heart attack or stroke conducted in community pharmacies will more than double from 900,000 last year to
2.5 million next year.
NHS chief executive Amanda Pritchard said the "ambitious package" would help transform how care is provided within the health service "with pharmacies playing a
central role in managing the nation's health including providing lifesaving checks and medication for common conditions for the first time.
Community Pharmacy England (CPE) is aiming to reach an agreement with the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and NHS England (NHSE) on negotiation
with regards to expanded services and payment model in the pharmacy sector.
Chief Executive Janet Morrison, said: "We are working at pace in negotiations with DHSC and NHSE. The process remains on track with the Government's original
timescale - i.e. aiming for agreement in July, with cross-government clearance later in July, and implementation from July through to September."
CPE is involved in working groups on service expansion of Hypertension Case-Finding and the Pharmacy Contraception Scheme and service design for the Common
Conditions Service; and are in in-depth negotiations on Payment models.
These discussions critically look at the balance between funding core capacity and activity payments, how the funding streams will be distributed and how CPE
will measure delivery and impact.
NHSE has been leading on the development of the PGD pathways for each of the 7 conditions, with external medical, pharmacy and other experts feeding into the
process - pharmacy owners from the Community Pharmacy England Committee have also been involved but the discussions are clinically led to ensure they comply with
NICE principles and concur with Antimicrobial Stewardship policy.
The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) has supported the Department of Health and Social Care's recommendation to 'aggressively expedite and roll out new medicines' that have gone through trials.
The ABPI welcomes government report on cancer services in England and the opportunity it provides to refocus how the pharmaceutical industry, NHS and government can improve the lives of cancer patients.
David Watson, executive director, Patient Access at the ABPI, said: "Despite progress, UK patients still have much worse five-year survival rates for many cancers than those in similar nations. Early diagnosis and fast and equal access to the latest treatments for all patients is key to reversing poor trends in NHS cancer care.
"We are pleased that the report reflects concerns about variable access to cancer medicines. We support the Committee's recommendations to 'aggressively expedite
and roll out new medicines' that have gone through trials and to ensure regulatory innovation results in swift uptake in the UK.