The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 278 No 7442 p282-283
10 March 2007

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Letters to the Editor

Community pharmacy

No money to pay for pharmacy services

From Mrs E. E. Hopkins, MRPharmS

The statement reported in The Pharmaceutical Journal (10 February, p157) regarding the services paid for by Hillingdon Primary Care Trust is misleading. It implies that all community pharmacies are paid to provide these services. This is not so. These services are mainly concentrated in so called deprived areas. Any applications for these services are met with a reply of “no money”.

This brings me to the letter from David Kent and the reply from Sue Sharpe (PJ, 17 February, p187). I think Mrs Sharpe is wildly optimistic regarding the low volume contractors. Any one of us can become a low volume contractor as a result of a contract that was hastily inflicted upon us by Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee members who are heavily balanced towards multiples. Even recently in the North West Thames regional elections it was a single contractor, who was also a member of the Association of Independent Multiple Pharmacies (AIMp), who was elected. How can he represent two different views that might arise?

We have a year left when £18,000 will be withdrawn from low volume contractors and Mrs Sharpe is optimistic that since one PCT has shown interest in her local pharmaceutical services we are all safe and sound, and with a little more work will remain solvent. Where will the money taken off us go?

How can my primary care trust be interested when it is £60m overspent?

Ewa Hopkins
Ealing, London

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