PSNC publishes transition plan from Pharmacy Earlier Payment Scheme to Advance Payments

As the government is winding down the Pharmacy Earlier Payment Scheme (PEPS), all community pharmacy contractors will be able to receive earlier advance payments from November.

To assist contractors in switching to the new mode of payment, the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC) published transition arrangements and timeline for existing PEPS pharmacy contractors.

PSNC director of Pharmacy Funding, Mike Dent, said, the transition arrangements will include a “one-off bridging payment for contractors using PEPS to be paid on November 1, 2021, to be recovered in equal parts over the following 11 months.”

The arrangement will help to ease any cashflow concerns and to provide time for contractors to review their finances, he said.

Dent added: “Separately, PSNC also used the opportunity presented by these discussions (with government) to progress conversations about introducing earlier Advance Payments for all contractors – these were successful in moving the Advance Payments earlier for those contractors who want to do so.”

As per the new payment system, contractors, who make their monthly FP34C submissions through the Manage Your Service (MYS) portal by November 5, will receive payments about 20 days earlier than the current timetable.