The consultation will set the future direction for the community pharmacy sector.
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has entered into consultation with Community Pharmacy England (CPE) regarding the 2024/25 and 2025/26 funding contractual framework.
The discussions will set the future direction for community pharmacy as it plays a vital role in supporting delivery of the reforms set out in the government's Plan for Change.
A letter signalling the start of the consultation was sent to CPE on Monday.
Moving the focus of care from hospitals into the community is one of the three core shifts outlined in the 10 Year Health Plan, which will be published later this year. The government has previously outlined its ambition to make better use of pharmacists' skills and training to deliver more services for patients within their local communities.
Minister of State for Care, Stephen Kinnock said:
Community pharmacists are at the heart of local healthcare, and they have a vital role to play as we shift from hospital to community, giving patients better access to care, closer to home, through our 10 Year Health Plan.
We have inherited a sector that is suffering from years of underfunding and neglect, but we recognise the hard work pharmacists undertake every day to deliver for patients.
I am committed to working closely with Community Pharmacy England to agree a package of funding that is reflective of the important support that they provide to patients up and down the country. I am confident that together we can get the sector back on its feet and fit for pharmacies and patients long into the future.
Janet Morrison, Chief Executive of Community Pharmacy England said:
We are relieved that discussions on the arrangements for community pharmacy are now commencing.
Community Pharmacy England will consider very carefully if the proposals that the Government is putting on the table address the severity of the funding crisis in community pharmacy.
Everyone in community pharmacy shares the Government's ambition for a vibrant community pharmacy sector, playing a vital role in delivering long term health plans, but this can only be achieved if the sector is put on a sustainable financial footing.
Amanda Doyle, National Director for Primary Care for NHS England, said:
The NHS knows just how important pharmacies are to local communities - they offer people convenient care close to home which is a key ambition of the 10 Year Health Plan.
We recognise that pharmacies are under pressure, and we are committed to working with the sector and government to ensure that patients can continue to receive high-quality care building on the exceptional work of teams over the past few years to develop and expand new services for patients.
