Key Summary
- Prison leavers will now receive a 28-day prescription upon release, replacing the previous seven-day supply intention.
- The process will be tracked via EPS, allowing for better tracking and reducing the need for immediate GP appointments.
- The move aims to eliminate "last-minute" dispensing requests, giving community pharmacists more time to dispense safely.
NHS England will now provide 28-days prescription for prison leavers, up from the previous seven days.
The new approach, developed by the Health and Justice Information Services (HJIS) team within NHS England, is designed to improve continuity of care and reduce the administrative burden on community pharmacies and GP practices when a prisoner is released.
A person leaving prison with a seven-day medicine supply used to put continuity of care at risk after a week. This used to put pressure on GPs and community pharmacies to respond to urgent requests from patients in need of ongoing treatment.
A 28-day prescription will give prison leavers enough time to register with a GP and obtain follow-on prescriptions.
It will also reduce immediate demand on community pharmacies and offer more predictable dispensing workloads.
It will support safer handover of medicines at a vulnerable transition point between secured and public settings.
The move is expected to make the professional workflow smoother for pharmacists, resulting in fewer urgent, "day-of-release" requests and providing the necessary window to dispense complex medications safely.
