WE MUST SAVE OUR CHEMISTS
Call for action as 72% of family-run shops face ruin
CELEBRITY doctors have backed our campaign to save family chemists. TV medics Hilary Jones and Ranj Singh and the Mirror’s Miriam Stoppard spoke after we revealed as many as three-quarters face closure due to cash cuts and losses.
Good Morning Britain’s Dr Hilary said: “It would be a tragedy if we lost independent pharmacies.”
FAMILY pharmacies have become a community lifeline in the Covid-19 crisis and they must now be handed more government cash to survive, Dr Hilary Jones warned last night.
The Good Morning Britain health expert, This Morning medic Dr Ranj Singh, and the Mirror’s Dr Miriam Stoppard joined the growing calls for ministers to step in and save small chemists after staff put their lives at risk to help others during the lockdown.
They both lent support to the Mirror’s campaign to rescue pharmacies after we revealed as many as three quarters could be under threat unless Boris Johnson acts quickly to avert looming closures.
Dr Hilary said of family chemists: “I can’t give them enough praise.
“They have been so fantastic during the pandemic, helping out the GPs, hospitals and their customers.
“They do a fantastic job year in, year out, they do so much for the community.
“They arrange for home deliveries, they are giving advice to people, they take pressure off GPs. They work tirelessly and do a fantastic job, and it would be a tragedy if we lost independent pharmacies that on the high street help local communities.
“We have got to give the funding to NHS England to help pharmacies survive and thrive. Because without, our health service will really suffer.”
Dr Ranj added: “The idea we could lose so many local, family- run pharmacies is heartbreaking.
“It was my local pharmacist who suggested I should become a doctor. Growing up I used to pop into the local shop and talk about what I wanted to do when I was older.
“I remember telling him I wanted to be a doctor but didn’t think I was clever enough but he told me to aim for the top.
“Local pharmacies have always been at the heart of the community. They give medical advice which takes so much pressure off GPs but they give so much more than that too. They are part of so many people’s everyday lives.”
Dr Miriam called it “dangerous”, adding: I see the closure of local pharmacists as equivalent to taking out one of the foundations of the maintenance of the health of everyone.”
National Pharmacy Association chair Andrew Lane warned years of underfunding has left pharmacists feeling like some in Whitehall “would be happy to see thousands close”.
Writing in the Mirror today he hailed community chemists as “unsung heroes” of the Covid-19 epidemic and added:
“Pharmacists have quietly got on with the business of keeping Britain healthy. They have put their own lives at risk to do this, and incurred considerable costs.”
A damning report published yesterday found as many as 6,500 family-owned chemists across England could have to close their doors in the next four years.
The study by accountancy firm Ernst & Young predicted 72% of independents would be losing money within four years if things go on as they are.
Its report found community chemists are underfunded to the tune of £497million a year.
Pharmacies receive £2.6billion from the NHS England budget, but that figure has already been slashed by £ 200m since 2016. Despite their crucial role, they are still a tiny proportion of England’s healthcare costs – making up just 2.3% of total NHS England spend.
And NHS funding makes up around 87% of revenues received by pharmacy services, with other income from over-the-counter sales and services commissioned by councils. But 28% were already making a loss in 2019 and the report estimates the average pharmacy will be making an annual loss of £43,000 by 2024.
Shadow Health Minister Alex Norris said: “Pharmacists and their teams have been heroes during this crisis. Their doors have never shut and they’ve been home delivering to vulnerable people. For a decade pharmacy has not been properly supported, now those chickens are coming home to roost. Pharmacies stood up for us, now the Government should have their back.”
The Department of Health and Social Care said: “Independent community pharmacies make an important contribution to the NHS, going above and beyond in response to Covid-19 to serve communities.
“During this pandemic, £370m has been made in advance payments to support pharmacies in maintaining medicine supplies and providing health advice.
“We are continuing to engage with the sector on funding to meet extra costs incurred during the pandemic.
“We will consider the findings of the report on independent pharmacy in England and any implications for NHS arrangements under the community pharmacy contractual framework.”
I just love serving the community. We take a lot of weight off GPs
ACHMAT ROSSIER PHARMACIST