The Independent Pharmacies Association has written to care minister Stephen Kinnock expressing concern about the rising drug prices and the gap between the NHS drug tariff and the actual price of medicines in the market.
In a letter signed by CEO & Executive Chair Dr Leyla Hannbeck and uploaded to LinkedIn, the IPA said this was forcing pharmacies to dispense items at a loss.
"Despite the record number of medicines on the concession list, the spike in wholesale prices means that equally record numbers of medicines have increased in prices beyond the NHS tariff but have not been placed on the concession list.
"This means that, for scores of medicines, pharmacists are effectively subsidising the NHS every time they fulfill a prescription."
The IPA said the situation was "unsustainable" and dispensing at a loss has led to "record debt by pharmacy owners and record branch closures."
The IPA has requested the minister to "please set out for us the basis on which DHSC asserts that it is lawful that pharmacies should dispense at a loss."
Price concessions
According to Community Pharmacy England, the numbers of price concessions announced in March and April were 201 and 204, respectively.
The CPE has described it as a concerning trend, reflecting fragility and instability in the medicines supply chain, which is being intensified by the Iran war.
CPE claims it has been receiving thousands of reports from pharmacy owners, which have been analysed to create evidence for price concessions.
It has made representations on behalf of pharmacy owners to the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and carried out detailed negotiations on these products to secure improved prices.
When community pharmacies cannot source a drug at or below the reimbursement price as set out in the drug tariff, the DHSC can introduce a price concession at the request of CPE.
