Amid rumours that LloydsPharmacy is considering closing all its branches after posting heavy losses in recent years, leading pharmacy bodies have launched A Save Our Pharmacies campaign website that calls for fair pharmacy funding in England.
As part of a joint programme of work being coordinated by PSNC, CCA, AIM and the NPA, the site contains key messages for the public, politicians and stakeholders, and hosts campaign resources to be used by pharmacies.
Members of the public and pharmacies are encouraged to show their support for the campaign on social media, as well as signing the petition and contacting their local MPs about fair funding. A window poster about the campaign is also being printed and mailed out to all community pharmacies in England.
In a joint statement, the national pharmacy organisations said: “A campaign of this kind benefits from having a central reference point like a website and a clear call to action like a petition. The website gives our supporters consistent messages, whilst the petition gives a persistent drumbeat for the campaign.
“The pharmacy bodies are determined to keep working together to secure fair funding in England. We’re also keeping up calls for a fully funded, nationwide ‘Pharmacy First’ service.”
Janet Morrison, PSNC Chief Executive, commented: “During the pandemic, pharmacy teams stepped up to support their local communities, and we should now be building on that vital contribution. Community pharmacy can be a key part of the solution for big NHS challenges such as GP access, but without proper investment in this sector, pharmacies will be forced to reduce their opening hours, cut back on services or even worse, close permanently. Patients will be forced to find care, medicines and advice elsewhere at a time when the NHS is in crisis. We can’t let this happen.”
Weeks after LloydsPharmacy announced it was shutting 237 concessions operating in Sainsbury’s supermarkets and other sites in its estate, The Sun newspaper reported last week that the private equity-owned business had launched a strategic review of its entire UK store base. Sources were quoted as saying the process could lead to the sale of all the LloydsPharmacy sites or their closure.
The pharmacy chain’s latest set of accounts highlighted its struggles in a challenging sector. Over the 12 months to 31 March 2022, LloydsPharmacy saw its operating losses widen from £35.1m to £57.0m on turnover down 3.4% to £1.70bn.
In the accounts, the business noted that it had been a “challenging” year, with the fall in revenue attributed to Covid restriction impacting store footfall, a reduction in store numbers, and “changes to Government reimbursement”. In a bid to cut losses and operate sustainably, LloydsPharmacy said it had continued to “optimise” its estate and work with its landlords to “regear our property costs”.
NAM Implications:
- Given the evidence pointing at government intent to privatise the NHS…
- …perhaps consumer-voter, industry and association pressure should be directed at Westminster?
- Otherwise, falling standards arising from inadequate funding…
- …could make it appear that the NHS model is broken and beyond repair…
- …and should be privatised?
