Pharmacy First

4 in 5 people in England can reach a community pharmacy within a 20-minute walk, and over 95% in England have signed up for the new Pharmacy First scheme.

The Pharmacy First scheme was launched on 31 January 2024 by the Government and NHS England and is available across England. Our Life Sciences Solicitors explore the details of this initiative.

The intention behind the introduction of the scheme is to ease pressure on GP services and to provide patients with quick and accessible care.

Under this scheme, community pharmacists are entitled to supply prescription medicine (including antibiotics and antivirals) to treat seven common health conditions without requiring a patient to visit a GP first and obtain a referral. Instead, individuals are encouraged to go ‘pharmacy first’.

The seven common conditions are sinusitis, sore throat, earache, an infected insect bite, impetigo, shingles and uncomplicated UTIs. 

Individuals may self-refer or be referred to participating pharmacies by their GP, NHS 111 and urgent and emergency care.

It is not a mandatory scheme; individuals can still choose to visit a GP, but Pharmacy First is intended to provide an alternative route to accessing medicine for these conditions.

Pharmacy First is capped at 3,000 consultations a month, which pays the participating pharmacy £15 per consultation under the scheme and a bonus payment of £1,000 per month when the pharmacy meets a minimum threshold of consultations provided in that month. 

The main anticipated benefit of the Pharmacy First scheme is that, by diverting patients with these common conditions to pharmacies for treatment, there will be more time freed up for GPs to see patients with more complex diagnoses. 

Targeting health inequality 

Another anticipated benefit of the scheme is to address health inequalities across England, as community pharmacies play an important role in their local communities by providing wider access to healthcare and support than GPs.

There are twice as many pharmacies in deprived communities, although these are often much more likely to close than their counterparts in affluent areas.

Where care can be provided from pharmacies, access to care is much quicker and more convenient, making people more likely to seek it out and receive treatment and advice.

To that effect, in the first month of the service, it was reported by the Company Chemists’ Association (CCA) that a third of consultations at participating pharmacies were provided in the 20% most deprived communities in England.

Concerns regarding anti-microbial resistance

There have been concerns raised that Pharmacy First will increase anti-microbial resistance, due to more widespread access to these medications.

The Government’s response is that the scheme is not anticipated to result in larger volumes of antibiotics being prescribed, and patients must undergo a consultation with a pharmacy before any medicine is prescribed, which will take into account the clinical appropriateness of prescribing any treatment.