CAMPAIGN FOR GOVERNMENT TO FUND PHARMACIES PROPERLY

#SaveOurPharmacies

About the campaign

The NPA are issuing an invoice for £108million per month to the Department for Health and Social Care to accommodate for the underfunding of community pharmacies across England.

As the representative organisation for independent community pharmacies in the UK, the NPA are calling on the Government to fund pharmacies properly for the vital work they do for their communities.

Why this campaign is important

Pharmacies have been under immense financial pressure with rising costs and declining real terms funding, which is resulting in the fastest rate of closures in decades. In England, community pharmacies have been closing at a record rate of 10 a week this year.

Government funding no longer covers the costs of the nation’s medicines, leaving pharmacies to subsidise the NHS from their own pockets. This leave pharmacies running out of options to stay afloat and will have to close their doors permanently without a real terms funding increase.

Why £108million per month

We have calculated that this figure represents the underpayment for supply of medicines to patients that the government owes pharmacies in England. This represents merely a restoration of funding, after inflation, to the levels of a decade ago.

What the funding should be

The National Pharmacy Association is calling for the Government to provide a new deal for pharmacies that fills growing funding gaps, stabilises the network and stops the closures. This includes the reversal of historic cuts to pharmacy, with community pharmacies receiving 2.5 per cent of the NHS budget, up from the 1.6 per cent they currently receive.

We believe pharmacies in England are facing a £1.3bn a year shortfall. We are calling on the Government to fund pharmacies properly for the vital work they do for their communities.

NPA Leading the Charge to Fight for Pharmacies

NPA Chief Executive Paul Rees with Board Members Olivier Picard and Salim Jetha deliver an invoice to cover pharmacy underfunding to the Department for Health and Social Care in Westminster, Thursday 16 May 2024.

How You Can Support

Pharmacy owners can: 

1. Calculate your under-funding based on our national estimates and generate an invoice

2. Send a letter to the Department of Health and Social Care along with your invoice

  • Download this letter template, complete your own pharmacy details and underfunding figure and send to the Department for Health and Social Care along with your invoice and send to dhsc.publicenquiries@dhsc.gov.uk to demand that they make up the shortfall, please ensure you copy us in the email with the email address independentsvoice@npa.co.uk.

3. Share on social media

  • Download this graphic to share on social media to show your support and highlight the financial pressures on pharmacies in England.

4. Use the hashtag #saveourpharmacies

  • By sharing this hashtag we will be working in solidarity with colleagues across the pharmacy sector and create more awareness to demand a better deal.

If you want to show your support for your local pharmacy, you can: 

1. Share on social media

  • Download this graphic to share on social media to show your support and highlight the financial pressures on pharmacies in England.

2. Use the hashtag #saveourpharmacies

  • By sharing this hashtag we will be working in solidarity with colleagues across the pharmacy sector and create more awareness to demand a better deal.

Follow us on our social channels, and don’t forget to tag us so you can be featured. We’ll be sharing throughout the week, so it’s a perfect opportunity to tune into our channels and discover our campaign work!

X: https://twitter.com/NPA1921

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/nationalpharmacyassociation/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/npa_1921/