The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 280 No 7493 p306
15 March 2008

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• Category M medicines
• Community pharmacy (3)
• Primary care contracts
• 100-hour pharmacies
• PCT commissioning
• Prescription charges
• Medicines use reviews
• Dispensing
• Minor ailment scheme
• Adverse drug reactions
• Asthma management (2)
• Non-practising status
• The Society

Letters to the Editor

100-hour pharmacies

Holding back the flood

From Mr M. A. Waldman, MRPharmS

The power of the primary care trust to deal with 100-hour pharmacy applications reminds me of the Dutch boy at the dyke, trying to hold back the flood. It is a farce, as the only outcome after the 45-day consultation period is “yes”, otherwise the PCT will be in breach of the law and could face legal penalties.

It is not enough to be offering all the services, as there will not be the funds to pay for them. Every pharmacy that opens will cost the PCT an average of £20,000 from the service allocation. Some areas have applications in the tens for 100-hour pharmacies.

So the only chance that established pharmacies have is to lobby their MP right now to call a halt on regulation 13, which allows exemption under the 100-hour rule. MPs need to put pressure on health minister Dawn Primarolo to do this now and not wait for the Darzi report later this year.

The Galbraith report is done but just sitting on a shelf; it needs to be activated.

Maurice Waldman
Director Maurice Anthony Ltd, Chelmsford, Essex

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