England Expands Pharmacy Prescribing to 5 More Ailments With £340 Million as Funding Row Persists
Updated
Updated · BBC.com · May 29
England Expands Pharmacy Prescribing to 5 More Ailments With £340 Million as Funding Row Persists
3 articles · Updated · BBC.com · May 29
Autumn will bring prescribing powers for five additional common ailments to more pharmacies in England under a £340 million expansion of the Pharmacy First scheme, though the conditions have not yet been named.
More than 3.3 million consultations were delivered through the scheme between March 2025 and February 2026, which ministers say shows pharmacists can absorb routine care and ease pressure on GPs and hospitals.
Pharmacy First, launched in 2024, already lets pharmacists prescribe for seven conditions including sore throat, earache, sinusitis, shingles, impetigo, infected bites and urinary tract infections.
The National Pharmacy Association backed the direction of travel but said the package leaves pharmacies exposed to rising business rates, employer costs and medicine prices, and does little to close a £2.5 billion funding gap.
Could a secretive US pharma deal drain the funds needed for the NHS Pharmacy First scheme to succeed?
With pharmacies closing weekly, is the Pharmacy First expansion being set up to fail?