An independent economic analysis of the community pharmacy sector in England commissioned by NHS England, published today, finds that:
- Around 47% of pharmacies were not profitable in their last accounting year.
- “NHS pharmaceutical services are not sustainable in the long-run” amongst 99% of pharmacies in England.
- 78% of pharmacies in England are “unsustainable in the short-run” and “there is a significant risk of interruption to NHS pharmaceutical services offered in these pharmacies”.
- “In aggregate terms, the full economic cost of delivering all NHS community pharmacy could rise from £5,063 million to £8,106 million between 2023/24 and 2029/30”.
Company Chemists’ Association Chief Executive Malcolm Harrison said:
“The economic analysis confirms what the CCA has warned of for many years – a decade of sustained underinvestment in the pharmacy network has had severe impacts and, without significant intervention, will continue to do so.
We hope that these stark findings will help to bring about lasting change to the direction of travel for pharmacies in England.
A strong community pharmacy sector is vital for maintaining patient access to medicines and urgent care, and as such to wider national economic growth.”
Background
In October 2022, as part of the final negotiated community pharmacy Contractual Framework deal, NHS England, Department of Health and Social Care and Community Pharmacy England agreed to commission an independent economic analysis of NHS pharmaceutical services. Frontier Economics and IQVIA were commissioned to undertake this review. More detail here.