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Starting from January 2024, it will be compulsory for medicine suppliers in the NHS supply chain in England to submit an Evergreen Sustainable Supplier Assessment each year. Suppliers who fail to submit the sustainability assessment will not be placed on medicines contracts, said NHS England. The NHS has taken this move as part of its ambition to reach carbon net zero by 2045. The Evergreen Sustainable Supplier Assessment is a self-assessment and reporting tool for suppliers to share sustainability information with the NHS. Chris McAleer, medicines net zero project delivery manager at NHS England, announced this new rule at the Guild of Healthcare Pharmacists' Procurement and Distribution Interest Group Autumn Symposium held in Birmingham on 2 November 2023.

NHS England has mandated a business continuity plan for pharmacies dealing with temporary closures from the end of this month. Community Pharmacy England (CPE) has put together a briefing and a template plan to help guide pharmacy owners through the process. It explains what is required in the plan, describes how and when to implement it, and outlines some additional considerations. "This could be added as an annex to your pharmacy's existing business continuity plan. A checklist has also been added, which may be used in the event of a temporary suspension," said CPE. "NHS England will be publishing the approved particulars shortly. NHS England is also still to publish guidance on the amendments to the Pharmaceutical Regulations that came into force on 25th May, which will include guidance on these requirements.

The recruitment of pharmacists in Primary Care Networks (PCNs) has exacerbated a general shortage of pharmacists, revealed an independent review of Integrated Care Systems (ICSs) published on Tuesday (4 April). The review, Rt Hon Patricia Hewitt, highlighted the impact that the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS) roles for pharmacists are having on the community pharmacy sector. "Contracts with national requirements can have unintended consequences when applied to particular circumstances. For instance, the national requirements and funding of Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS) roles for community pharmacists within PCNs, has on occasion exacerbated the problem of a general shortage of pharmacists, with some now preferring to work within primary care rather than remain in community pharmacies or acute hospitals, compounding the problem of community pharmacy closures and delayed discharges." It set out to consider the oversight and governance of ICS in England and the NHS targets and priorities for which Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) are accountable, including those set out in the Government's mandate to NHS England. As part of this work, Hewitt and her team engaged with a wide range of stakeholders representing various local health and social care settings, including LPCs.

In a recent announcement the government has mandated frontline NHS staff to be vaccinated against Covid-19, keeping people working in community pharmacies out of this purview. In its response to the announcement, General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) has urged "pharmacists and pharmacy technicians to get Covid-19 and flu vaccinations at the earliest opportunity, unless they are medically exempt." GPhC, which regulates pharmacists and other staff in community pharmacies, said that vaccinated healthcare workers can better protect their family, colleagues and patients. During the government consultation on making Covid-19 jab a condition of deployment for frontline health and care workers in England, GPhC had said: "Getting vaccinated is clearly something that should be done by all pharmacy professionals, although we do not support making vaccination a mandatory legal requirement."

Prime minister Boris Johnson announced on Wednesday (January 19) that restrictions re-imposed in England last month would be lifted by from next Thursday (January 27). In the latest development, the government has decided to end the guidance on working from home, asking employers to make adequate arrangements to return safely to work. From the start of next Thursday, mandatory certification based on vaccines and tests will end, however, organisations can still choose to use the NHS Covid Pass voluntarily. Besides, the legal mandate to wear face masks will go away from next week. Making a statement to the House of Commons on Covid-19, he said that infection levels are falling in England mainly because of the country's "extraordinary booster campaign". He noted more than 36 million Covid-19 booster jabs had been delivered, with over 90 percent of over-60s now given a third dose. "Our scientists believe it is likely that the Omicron wave has now peaked nationally," Johnson added, while cautioning "the pandemic is not over". "I encourage everyone across the country to continue with all the cautious behaviours that we know help to keep each everybody safe."

The full-time equivalent community pharmacy workforce saw a 6 per cent decline in a year, while the overall number of pharmacists remains nearly constant, according to NHS England's Community Pharmacy Workforce Survey 2022. However, vacancy rates among pharmacists rose 16 percent, suggesting an increased reliance on locum pharmacists who, on average, work fewer hours, the data revealed. According to NHSE, the mandated survey released (Aug. 3) achieved a 95 per cent completion rate among pharmacy contractors, marking a substantial increase compared to only 47 per cent in the previous year. The survey results indicate a shift in working patterns within community pharmacy, with locum pharmacists being utilised more frequently as part of the staffing model. The survey revealed a 6 per cent decrease in the community pharmacy workforce across all roles combined. The number of full-time equivalent pharmacists working in community pharmacy decreased by 2,411, from 20,255 in 2021 to 17,844 in 2022, the survey found. The employed pharmacists decreased by 16 per cent from 12,774 in 2021 to 10,943 in 2022, while locum pharmacists increased by 26 per cent from 4,297 in 2021 to 5,477 in 2022, NHSE said.

The regulatory amendments proposed will enable pharmacists to dispense medicines in their original packaging for private prescriptions starting this Autumn, according to the Department of Health and Social Care. In the recently published draft OPD regulations, the DHSC has indicated that the alterations, permitting pharmacists to vary the dispensed quantity by up to 10 per cent to avoid splitting medicine packs, will be implemented for private prescriptions 'immediately upon the enforcement of the Human Medicines Amendment Regulations in the autumn,' as highlighted in a briefing by Community Pharmacy England. CPE stated that the regulations related to NHS prescriptions will come into effect when the pharmaceutical terms of service regulations expressly apply the OPD amendments. Moreover, new directive mandating the dispensing of sodium valproate products solely in their original packaging (except when an assessment of risk necessitates an alternative approach) will align with the rollout of the private prescription regulations during the autumn. CPE further noted that these regulations are currently in draft, indicating that they are not currently in effect and may undergo revisions prior to their implementation.

The Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC) has published an update on the work it is doing as part of the Transforming Pharmacy Representation (TAPR) Programme to take forward the mandate from contractors to deliver the Review Steering Group (RSG) recommendations. The update is primarily aimed at LPCs - with whom PSNC has been working closely on some of the TAPR work over the summer. The TAPR Programme is being undertaken in support of PSNC's work to address the severe challenges facing the community pharmacy sector at present. Alongside ongoing negotiations with Government and the NHS, two of the TAPR workstreams - focusing on Vision and Strategy, and on Influencing and Negotiation - are essential to supporting CPCF negotiations. "The workstreams are looking at the future of community pharmacy and how best to persuade policymakers to implement a shared vision, with their objective being to put the sector in a stronger position going into future CPCF negotiations," said PSNC.

The British Medical Association (BMA) on Wednesday announced that 33,869 junior doctors have voted in favour of extending the industrial action and the use of action short of strike (ASOS). With a turnout of 62 per cent, their demand stems from the ongoing campaign for complete pay restoration. The new mandate will last till September 19, starting on 3 April. The BMA junior doctors committee co-chairs, Dr Robert Laurenson and Dr Vivek Trivedi, expressed frustration at the year-long strike action, highlighting the government's avoidance tactics to tackle soaring waiting lists, access to GPs and staff shortages. "The government should see the urgency of the situation. Rather than waste time dragging out talks, they can come forward with a credible offer on pay right now. " "Instead, they could be celebrating a revitalised and reinvigorated junior doctor workforce, one that feels that their value has started to be restored. That would be an achievement worth celebrating for everyone and begin to finally turn the tide on the deteriorating workforce crisis," they said.