The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has called for free flu vaccinations for pharmacists in England and Wales, saying it’s “shocking” that they are not eligible despite working on the frontline throughout the coronavirus pandemic.
The RPS has urged the NHS to offer free flu jabs for all pharmacists following reports that pharmacy teams across primary care, including locum staff, would not be given access to free vaccinations.
RPS president Claire Anderson said it was “shocking that pharmacists in England and Wales” were not eligible for free flu vaccinations to protect themselves and the public who visit them regularly.
“As we have seen over the past eighteen months, pharmacists are not dispensable and we are therefore calling on the NHS to offer free flu vaccinations to pharmacists and pharmacy teams in both England and Wales, as is the case in Scotland,” Anderson said.
Community pharmacy and general practice pharmacy teams will be included in the NHS Scotland flu vaccination programme this year, and RPS says it now wants the situation in England and Wales reviewed urgently.
