Pharmacy

Department of Health written question – answered at on 20 April 2017.

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Photo of Richard Burden Richard Burden Shadow Minister (Transport)

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment he has made of the financial viability of independent, locally owned pharmacies.

Photo of David Mowat David Mowat The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health

The Pharmacy Access Scheme (PhAS) will protect access in areas where there are fewer pharmacies with higher health needs, ensuring that no area need be left without a pharmacy.

As the Impact Assessment, published on 20 October 2016, sets out, pharmacies that do not receive the PhAS, but do receive the quality payment will on average be receiving a 4.6% funding reduction in 2016/17 and an 8.3% reduction in 2017/18. Other revenue streams from clinical commissioning groups, Public Health England and local authorities are unaffected by these reductions.

It is difficult to predict precisely the impact of these proposals on the viability of community pharmacies and, therefore, which - if any - might close as a result of the cut in funding. That is because there are a number of business models within the community pharmacy sector, and reductions in NHS funding will impact differently on different community pharmacies depending on a range of factors.

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