Key Summary
- Smoking costs NHS an estimated £2.6 billion annually and the overall societal cost is estimated to be £46 billion.
- Smokers can approach their GP for support, but they are under significant pressure and not easily accessible, especially for follow-ups.
- There are smoking cessation self-care products available over-the-counter, but cost remains a barrier for many.
A Company Chemists’ Association (CCA) report has called for a nationally commissioned smoking cessation service spearheaded by community pharmacies.
The report, ‘Expanding Smoking Cessation Support Through Community Pharmacy’, indicates that such a service would help over 225,000 people to quit smoking each year, and would be more effective in deprived areas where a third of all adult smokers reside.
Smoking continues to be one of England’s largest public health challenges, with five million smokers and approximately 75,000 deaths every year.
It costs the NHS an estimated £2.6 billion annually, and the overall societal cost is around £46 billion.
The study, financially supported by Pfizer, indicates that those wishing to quit smoking are provided with some support, but these services have failed to keep up with the demand.
Smokers can approach their GP for support, but they are under significant pressure and not easily accessible, especially for follow-ups.
There are smoking cessation self-care products available over-the-counter, but cost remains a barrier for many.
In England, a national smoking cessation service (SCS) exists in community pharmacies, but it is only available for patients who have started a quit attempt in hospital and want to continue with a community pharmacy of their choice.
The national service is vastly underused, with less than 5 percent of pharmacies receiving referrals from this service.
Between April 2024 and March 2025, only 11,728 consultations took place, and only 20 percent hailed from deprived areas.
Community pharmacies are ideally suited to lead this service, as they have a good presence in deprived areas, where smoking rates are the highest.
The CCA report has also called for implementing Booking and Referral standards to allow other healthcare professionals to refer to community pharmacy.
CCA chief executive Malcolm Harrison said, “A national smoking cessation service commissioned through community pharmacies would end the postcode lottery and help stub out the impact that smoking has on the nation’s health and economy once-and-for all”.
Dr Berkeley Phillips, UK Medical Director, Pfizer UK commented, “This timely report offers practical measures to effectively support those seeking to quit smoking and take better care of their health."
NPA response
In response to the CCA report, the National Pharmacy Association chief executive, Henry Gregg, said, "Smoking remains one of the leading causes of serious ill health in the country and community pharmacies can play a massive role in helping patients to quit.
"As this analysis shows, stop smoking services are too often a confusing patchwork quilt of local arrangements, with patients being faced with a postcode lottery to access the help they need, and sometimes, where a service does exist, it is not adequately funded.
"Pharmacies are highly accessible, located on the high street and in the heart of communities. They can be easily used by young people and others without the need for public transport or appointments, removing practical barriers to support.
"To help get the best support possible to patients, the government should nationally commission stop smoking services in pharmacies, which will reach much larger numbers of people and help reduce rates of smoking, improving and extending people's lives and easing the burden on our NHS."
