NEWS NEWS IN BRIEF PCA(P)(2015)7 - KEY FACTS
PCA(P)(2015)7 outlines the changes in the Drug Tariff with respect to remuneration ar- rangements for the dispensing month March 2015.
Community Pharmacy Scotland have developed a Key Facts Document for PCA(P)(2015)7 to distil the information for this circular. This is highlighted below:
• Dispensing Pool increases by 4% from £68.8m to £71.4m annually. This equates to £5.95m per month
• Pharmaceutical Needs Payment increases from £3.6m to £3.84m.
• The fee for submitting 12 week quit data has increased from £20 to £35. The fees for submitting initial data capture and 4 week quit status remain unchanged.
• From 1 August 2015 the Quality and Efficiency percentage electronic claiming target increases to 90% to receive any payment
• The guaranteed minimum target for Essential Small Pharmacies rises £50 to £3750
• The criteria for the Operation and Development payment remain unchanged and roll forward monthly
£125 per month for providing the Gluten Free Foods Service
A variable amount relating to
• Having 95% of Registered CMS patients with an initial assessment
• At least 5% of the total number of CMS patients have a NMIST or HRMT intervention
• Having an SOP in place for serial prescription dispensing
6 - SCOTTISH PHARMACIST £80m for new medicines in 2015/16
The Scottish Government will double the amount of money available to fund treatments for people with rare or end-of-life conditions by increasing the New Medicines Fund to £80 million for 2015/16.
said the New Medicines Fund had helped give patients across Scotland access to some of the most-advanced treatments and therapies.
The New Medicines Fund, set up last year to expand and replace the Rare Conditions Medicines Fund, supports health boards to fund the cost of orphan, ultra-orphan and end-of-life drugs for patients.
This is the second year in a row that the Scottish Government has doubled the amount of money available to fund new medicines, with £20 million provided in 2013/14 and £40 million provided in 2014/15.
The fund also supports changes to the way the Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC) assesses medicines for use in NHS Scotland, which is resulting in an increasing number of treatments being approved for patients with very rare conditions or at end of life.
On a visit this morning to the Scottish Cystic Fibrosis Service at the Western General in Edinburgh, Health Secretary Shona Robison
Ms Robison met with staff to discuss the services provided to patients with cystic fibrosis in the East of Scotland, as well as hearing from patients who have benefitted from new drugs funded by the New Medicines Fund.
“This Government, working with the Scottish Parliament’s Health and Sport Committee, has radically overhauled access to treatments for people with rare and end-of-life conditions, and the New Medicines Fund has been key to removing a potential barrier to accessing expensive new drugs,” she said.
“Today, I have heard first hand from patients with cystic fibrosis about how some of these new drugs coming on the market can have a life-changing impact.
“For many patients, innovative treatments can extend their lives or improve the quality of the time they have left, and I am clear that we should be doing all we can to make these available.
“That is why I am announcing today that we will double the resources available to fund new medicines,
committing £80 million next year to support patients needing rare or end- of-life treatments.
“The fund will work in tandem with the changes introduced to the SMC process, which has given patients greater say over decisions and resulted in more drugs approved for widespread use on the NHS.”
Yvonne Hughes, Public Affairs Officer for the Cystic Fibrosis Trust, commented that the announcement will help ease the minds of patients unsure of the future of the fund.
“Not only that, they can take comfort that the Scottish Government have paid attention and continue to support small patient populations, and those at end of life to receive drugs that really do make life-changing or life-extending improvements.”
Since 2013/14, over 1000 Scottish patients have started treatment funded by both the New Medicines Fund and the Rare Conditions Medicines Fund.
The number of patients benefitting from these changes and the associated funding continues to grow each year. From around 200 patients in 2013/14 to over 800 patients in 2014/15.
Pharmacy to play major role in future health
“Pharmacy will play a major role in improving the nation’s health in the future, especially with an NHS system under significant capacity strain.” These were the words of Alliance Healthcare Chairman, Mike Smith, at the British Pharmaceutical Students’ Association (BPSA) conference, held in Liverpool earlier this month.
“The role of pharmacy will continue to evolve significantly in the next few years and will continue to become a valued provider of not just medicines, but also healthcare services. You are the future of pharmacy and you will be key to driving this. I am confident that our profession will be safe in your hands,” he added.
Mr Smith has been involved in pharmacy for more than 45 years, after qualifying as a pharmacist from
Aston University in 1967. He then went on buy his own pharmacy in 1976, before developing a group of pharmacies in the West Country, which operated for 24 years. He has also held roles in Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee, National Pharmacy Association, NHS Litigation Authority and is a current member of the European Pharmacy Federation.
The occasion was also used to launch a special award. Pharmacy students, pre-registration trainees and recently qualified pharmacists were called upon to enter the 2015 Alliance Healthcare (Distribution) Ltd Future of Pharmacy Student Award.
The award requires entrants to submit a 500 word essay on “the vision of community pharmacy in
a truly integrated health and social care system”. The winning entry will win £500.
Launching the award Mr Smith said, “As the UK’s leading pharmaceutical wholesaler and distributors, Alliance Healthcare provides twice-daily deliveries to pharmacies across the country, so we have a very important relationship with pharmacists. It makes sense that we show our strong support for pharmacy students, who are the future of pharmacy and will play a very important role in the delivery of healthcare in coming years.”
Entries for the Future of Pharmacy Student Award are open until Friday 29 May 2015. For more information and the entry form, please visit:
www.bpsa.co.uk/alliance
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