The organisation representing Scotland's high street pharmacies say the funding on offer for the current financial year is not enough to allow the nation’s only universal free professional walk-in healthcare service to keep going.

At an emergency meeting of its board, Community Pharmacy Scotland (CPS) has rejected the 2023/24 financial package put forward by the Scottish government.

The organisation, which negotiates on behalf of Scotland's 1,258 community pharmacy owners, says ministers must now intervene to ensure that the Scottish Drug Tariff, which sets the levels of reimbursement for each item dispensed, is increased to recognise that Scotland's pharmacies are in ‘serious financial trouble’.

It comes just days after Scotland's independent care providers took the equally unprecedented step of going public asking for Scottish government ministers to step in to rescue the national care home contract negotiations or face a ‘huge number’ of care home closures.

In its statement, Community Pharmacy Scotland also says it is concerned that the negotiations, which started last September towards a deal that would have started last month, have taken an unusual turn:

‘[The process] has largely been collaborative. However, in recent months, negotiations have departed from the normal process of engagement, with conversations occurring in areas of government that CPS has no access to. The protracted negotiations have eventually resulted in an offer for this year on Thursday 25th of May. This was unanimously rejected by the CPS board at an emergency meeting.’

The organisation says the medicines that pharmacists buy to allow them to fill prescriptions are costing more than ever before and, in some cases, more than the amount the NHS reimburses – meaning pharmacy owners are running at a loss to keep their shelves filled.

The statement adds:

‘The funding package, which may be imposed on our members, we fear, is not enough to keep our world-leading services running as they have been through the pandemic and beyond.

‘The impact of insufficient funding on businesses and communities alike is devastating – community pharmacies are the only free professional healthcare service available without an appointment across the whole country.’

Scotland's network of community pharmacies supplies around 9 million prescription items each month.

In July 2020, a new service, NHS Pharmacy First, was launched to allow people to consult a pharmacist about certain conditions, and for the pharmacist to then prescribe the appropriate medicine, rather than the patient having to go to their GP practice.

The Scottish government has been invited to comment on the CPS statement.

Read more: A pharmacist on the frontline; Pharmacy’s crucial role in fair access to health;  Renewed campaign to divert people from going to A&E;

Sign up to our bulletin for key health & social care updates straight to your inbox and you can follow healthandcare.scot on Google News.