The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 279 No 7469 p284
15 September 2007

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News summary

New proposals on remuneration for stoma supplies

Consultation has started on revised proposals on how community pharmacies and appliance contractors in England should be paid for dispensing stoma and incontinence supplies and providing related services.

The consultation, which closes on 29 November 2007, seeks views on seven changes to earlier proposals:

• Extending home delivery and complimentary supplies to prescriptions for catheters and incontinence items with a £3.23 fee

• Extending specialist nurse home visits to catheter and incontinence patients

• Paying £40 per specialist nurse visit

• Paying a £3 fee for customising stoma items (capped at 25,000 items a month)

• A 10-level infrastructure payment for appliance contractors

• Revision of the classification of products

• Cutting Drug Tariff prices by a previously proposed formula, subject to a 35 per cent cap, or cutting all prices by 12 per cent

The proposed price cuts will lead to savings of £25m a year on the current annual spend of £200m, as opposed to the £27m saving that had been previously sought. Changes to the dispensing fee structure are intended to be cost-neutral, with total annual remuneration remaining at £32m.

The DoH has also published a draft Statutory Instrument setting out new terms of service that will apply to the provision of stoma and incontinence appliances and related services to ensure that patients get the same level of service no matter where they choose to have their prescriptions dispensed.