BRITS’ health is at risk because of “critical” medicine shortages, pharmacy bosses warn.
A report by Community Pharmacy England said supply issues are now a daily occurrence and 97 per cent of chemists have struggled with them.
Eight in 10 say they are worried about their patients’ health and safety.
Many patients are forced into “pharmacy bingo” and travel from one to the next to try and get their prescription filled.
A shocking 84 per cent of pharmacists, in the poll of 2,900, report being abused by customers who are frustrated they cannot get their meds.
William Pett, from Healthwatch England, said: “Medicines supply continues to wreak havoc on patients.
“Our polling at the end of last year showed that one in four members of the public had experienced shortages in the last 12 months.
“Shortages can lead to rationing and desperate instances of ‘pharmacy bingo’, where patients must travel from pharmacy to pharmacy looking for stock.
“We are calling for a review of the medicine supply chain.”
Not having access to medicines can have very serious consequences
Janet Morrison
Community Pharmacy England said shortages are being caused by a combination of global supply issues and discontinuation of products.
It said the low prices of medicines in the UK put off investors.
Recent high-profile shortages include hormone replacement therapy for menopause and drugs used to treat epilepsy and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Janet Morrison chief executive of CPE, said: “The medicine supply challenges being faced by community pharmacies and their patients are beyond critical.
“For some patients, not having access to the medicines they need could lead to very serious consequences, even leaving them needing to visit A&E.
“Pharmacies are doing everything they can to find solutions for all their patients, but are powerless to resolve national and global supply issues.”
Mark Dayan, from the Nuffield Trust think tank, added: “Nearly every available indicator shows that since 2021 we have experienced a once unthinkable level of medicine shortages again and again.
“The crisis jumps between products and conditions with no sign of showing down. This important survey demonstrates the impact on pharmacists and patients more clearly than anything we have seen before.”
HUNDREDS OF CHEMISTS CLOSING
RISING costs have led to hundreds of pharmacies shutting for good – at a time when they have been given extra duties to help patients struggling to see their GPs.
Between 2019 and 2022, taking into account the number of pharmacy openings and closures, the net figure was down 491, leaving just 11,500 in England.
This year supermarkets have announced there will be another 244 closures.
It means the elderly and ill have no choice but to travel miles to find what they need — or go without.
NHS England’s budget for the sector was cut to £2.59billion in 2017-18 and has been frozen ever since.
Reimbursement from the NHS has not kept up with rising prescription prices, and pharmacies are expected to do increasing amounts of work plus pay more for utility bills and endure staff shortages.
Pharmacist Graham Phillips told The Sun on Sunday: “It is a perfect storm. The system is crumbling. If pharmacists cease to exist, imagine how much more chaotic our health system will be.
“We are the front line. I can guarantee you that patients will die as a consequence of this crisis.”