NPA speaks out over category M
If the Government wants a competitive medicines market that keeps down
the costs of health care then the system that governs fair return must
be reliable and predictable, Alison White, the National Pharmacy Association’s
new chief executive, told conference participants at the Pharmacy Show
held in Birmingham this week.
Ms White’s speech focused on the sustainability of community pharmacy
services in light of recent upheavals in the sector.
Commenting on the announcement on changes to Category M medicines prices
(PJ, 6 October, p371), she said: “What is needed right now is reassurance
that changes will be made and that boom and bust funding will stop. Pharmacy
needs stable and defined cash-flows, to give it the confidence to invest
in its future.”
On the issue of enhanced services and the lack of locally commissioned
pharmacy services, Ms White said she hoped to see a period of capacity
building of commissioning authorities, with safeguards built into the
process. “The sorts of things that I’m thinking about are:
performance management of commissioning authorities to nationally defined
standards; a definition of the minimum standards required; measurement
of treatment outcomes and, very importantly, the ongoing protection of
pharmacy budgets, so that they don’t get swallowed up by other
PCT priorities.”
She suggested that these measures were necessary to protect the future
viability of the community pharmacy network and for high quality and
consistent services to be provided to patients.
Ms White also called on pharmacists to re-define their relationship with
the pharmaceutical industry in response to changes being made to how
medicines are distributed. “What community pharmacy cannot afford
to do is to stand still and wait for others to act. We must now redefine
our relationship with medicines manufacturers, and think about setting
out what it is that community pharmacists want in the future.”
She concluded that without sustainable, predictable income then confidence
among pharmacists will drop, investment will slow down and patient care
could ultimately be at risk.
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