A new report by the All-Party Pharmacy Group (APPG) calls for urgent action to tackle escalating medicine shortages.
The APPG make several urgent recommendations including
- Reforming future pharmacy funding models to reflect the growing burden of medicines shortages.
- Creating a UK-wide real-time medicines shortages communication system for patients, prescribers and pharmacists.
- Establishing a national patient advisory panel to ensure the patient voice informs policy responses.
- Expanding domestic medicines manufacturing to reduce dependency on fragile global supply chains.
- Empowering pharmacists to make safe substitutions during shortages, reducing unnecessary GP referrals.
- Commissioning an independent review of the UK medicines supply chain to identify long-term reforms.
CCA Chief Executive Malcolm Harrison commented: “We welcome this timely report by the APPG which, once again, highlights the worrying impact of shortages on patients and pharmacy teams. The report makes several sensible recommendations.
Shortages are, unfortunately, becoming increasingly common, and, without action, could get worse.
The longstanding drive to reduce the medicines bill is proving counterproductive. The government must invest in competitive pricing for medicines to make the UK an attractive place in the global market for medicine manufacturers and suppliers.
We urgently need an end-to-end review of the medicines supply chain to ensure it is as resilient as possible, so patients can access the medicines they need, today and in the future.”
The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Pharmacy, established in 1999, seeks to raise awareness of the profession of pharmacy, and to promote pharmacists’ current and potential contribution to the health of the nation.