A pharmacist says he is having to use his own savings to keep his business afloat due to the rising cost of medications. Dipak Pau, 64, from the Pillbox Pharmacy in Great Baddow, Essex, says his NHS contract no longer covers the cost of the drugs he has to dispense, which has left him using his own money.
“There are so many medicines that we are dispensing at a loss, I personally have had to put in family money to keep the business going,” he said.
A number of pharmacies in the region have said they are struggling because they are not being fully reimbursed for the medication they dispense. Almost 800 pharmacies have permanently closed in England over the last four years according to NHS figures.
Many pharmacists blame NHS funding, which they say has not risen in real terms in a decade. The NHS does not match the increasing prices that the pharmacy has to pay, Mr Pau added, which means his business covers the rest of the cost – without reimbursement.
Marie Goldman, the Liberal Democrat MP for Chelmsford, raised Mr Pau’s plight at PMQs and called on the government to change how the NHS reimburses independent pharmacies.
In parliament, she said: “Dipak has sometimes been forced to pay over 100 times more for a particular mental health drug than his contact providers, to keep his pharmacy afloat.”
Mr Pau said the pharmacy used to stock an anti-psychotic drug which used to cost a “few pounds” – but now costs £170.
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