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Out of more than 4,700 pharmacies signed up to provide the NHS community pharmacy smoking cessation service, 203 claimed payment for a consultation in the second quarter of 2024/2025, according to data from Community Pharmacy England (CPE).
The claim figures were revealed through an analysis by The Pharmaceutical Journal of CPE figures for July, August and September 2024 — which are based on NHS Digital and NHS Business Services Authority data — despite a total of 4,721 pharmacy contractors having signed up for the service by the end of the quarter.
Pharmacy contractors have been able to register for and provide the NHS smoking cessation service since March 2022, with more than 2,000 community pharmacies signing up to the service in the first two months of its launch.
The service is intended to provide follow-up stop-smoking care for patients who have recently been discharged from hospital, following a referral.
Between July and September 2024, pharmacies claimed for 2,941 consultations through the service, according to the CPE data.
However, pharmacies are reliant on hospitals for referrals, with some trusts having not taken up the national service and instead refer to locally commissioned services.
The data analysis showed that only one contractor submitted a claim in the past 12 months in the area of the Derbyshire Local Pharmaceutical Committee (LPC), even though 61 pharmacies are registered to provide the service.
Nick Hunter, chief officer of Community Pharmacy Derbyshire, said local hospitals were not referring through the NHS smoking cessation service and were managing the service through a different process.
“We’re not surprised — it’s not the only [national service] that’s got slight variation on how it’s implemented locally. It’s a bit of a shame really because it is working well in other areas.
“We’ve only got so much time and capacity ourselves… [if] they’re not going to refer to us, then we’ll just focus on Pharmacy First, blood pressure, contraception service and those sorts of things,” he added.
Just under half (30) of the 64 contractors in the Dudley LPC area were signed up to the service, of which 11 contractors submitted claims in the most recent quarter.
Stephen Noble, chief officer of Community Pharmacy Dudley, said that the pharmacy has put on training and supplied information on the NHS-funded service, but with “mixed response”.
“Low uptake is down to several factors, but will include some pharmacies not signing up to the service and poor recruitment and referral at hospital, although Dudley seems to be punching above our weight,” he added.
The analysis also revealed that the Somerset LPC area recorded two instances of claiming contractors over the most recent 12-month period, with none in the most recent quarter.
A spokesperson for Somerset Integrated Care Board said: “Complexities involved in implementing this scheme have hampered its effectiveness. However, we are about to launch an ambitious quit smoking campaign across Somerset in partnership with public health colleagues, with the aim of achieving smoke free by 2030.”
Similarly, Kent LPC area data show that there were no claims submitted in the second quarter of 2024/2025, even though 153 pharmacies have signed up to the service.
Mark Anyaegbuna, chief executive of Community Pharmacy Kent, told The Pharmaceutical Journal that the low uptake owed to the service still being “at a very early stage”.
“We need the TDAs [tobacco dependency advisors] to be in place. We need to agree a local pathway. Without those things in place, it wouldn’t work.
“It is a service we really need to get going, because community pharmacy is an important arm of primary care… we need to be able to ensure that there is a full range of services available to people.
“That support needs to be there for them and closer to their homes, so they can look after themselves effectively.”
Commenting on the figures, Hazel Cheeseman, chief executive of charity Action on Smoking and Health, said: “Support to quit smoking in the community is vital to address inequalities and ensure everyone who wants to can access high-quality support.
“NHS England should review how referrals into and uptake of this service can be maximised, as part of the promised shift to prevention the government has committed to.”
A pharmacy maternity smoking cessation pilot scheme in Nottingham was discontinued in 2024 owing to low referral numbers. A freedom of information request submitted by The Pharmaceutical Journal established that just one pharmacy had submitted a claim for treatment under the scheme in 2024.
NHS England told The Pharmaceutical Journal that the service is running as expected.
