PJ view: Changes to hub-and-spoke legislation are too late for a community pharmacy sector in crisis From 1 January 2025, all community pharmacies will be able to outsource dispensing to a third party but the “significant impact” it will have on the challenges facing the sector have been overstated by the government.…
Boots UK shuts online mental health service to new patients Exclusive: The multiple launched the online service in 2022, but says it is now at capacity and will be “temporarily paused” to new patients.…
MHRA announces development of tool for public to report websites selling fake medicines The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency said the new checking tool will allow it to investigate and take enforcement action against unsafe websites.…
Amira Guirguis: ‘We want to use our expertise to prepare for future threats’ As the recently appointed chair of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society’s science and research committee, Amira Guirguis sets out her goals for her new role and calls for more proactivity in the fight against substance misuse.…
Pharmacy2U purchase of LloydsDirect given go ahead by competition regulator The Competition and Markets Authority announced it was investigating the acquisition in December 2023.…
Competition regulator investigates Pharmacy2U purchase of LloydsDirect The Competition and Markets Authority is investigating the acquisition of LloydsDirect by Pharmacy2U while it considers whether the merger could lead to "a substantial lessening of competition" in markets in the UK.…
Pharmacy2U joins the Company Chemists’ Association In a statement, the Company Chemists’ Association (CCA) said Pharmacy2U “is strongly aligned with the CCA's mission of enabling community pharmacy evolution”.…
Online pharmacies are eight times more likely to fail regulatory standards, data show Exclusive: Investigation reveals how some online pharmacies are repeatedly prescribing large amounts of opioids and z-drugs, in one case using an accountant to approve medicine orders.…
Online pharmacy boom prompts concern over patient safety As the demand for online pharmacies continues to grow — following a boost from the COVID-19 pandemic — regulators are scrambling for full control over the safety of the services they provide.…
Online pharmacy dispensing quadruples in five years, NHS data show According to data from the NHS Business Services Authority, distance-selling pharmacies dispensed 52,930,116 items in 2021, up 301% from the 13,190,131 items dispensed in 2016.…
