Archives: Contractor Email

This update contains important information for community pharmacy teams.

CPNI ALERTS

DOH(NI) ALERTS

BSO ALERTS

Training Event: Webinar on Human Factors and Medication Safety

Community Pharmacists in NI are invited to attend the third session of a webinar series on 21 January 2025 at 7pm-8pm that has been organised by the Royal Pharmaceutical Society on behalf of the joint Royal Colleges.

The online webinar Exploring Human Factors: Designing systems to enhance medication safety, will discuss look-alike sound-alike medicines (LASAs) and will demonstrate different approaches that can be taken to improve the safety of systems.  To register for the webinar please click here.

Transforming Medication Safety NI (TMSNI)

The TMSNI group have organised an Echo session on 5 February 2025 10-11.30am to discuss Look-Alike Sound-Alike medicines (LASAs).  The TMSNI group are requesting input into the session from any community pharmacists that have done additional work in this area to improve medication safety.

If any community pharmacists wish to provide input into the next Echo session, please contact Clare at CPNI for further information.

Pharmacy team(s) can keep updated via CPNI’s Contractor Calendar and Contractor Emails.

Or report medicine shortages, pricing and staffing issues via CPNI’s Medicine Shortage Reporter and Situation Reporter.

Please bring this to the attention of your pharmacy team(s).

Kind regards

SENT ON BEHALF OF
Gerard Greene
Chief Executive
Dear Colleague
The second update of concessionary prices were granted today for January 2025:
DrugPack SizeConcessionary Price
Acamprosate 333mg gastro-resistant tablets168£21.90
Bimatoprost 300micrograms/ml / Timolol 5mg/ml eye drops3£8.83
Captopril 25mg tablets56£21.19
Codeine 15mg/5ml linctus200£16.50
Fenofibrate micronised 160mg tablets28£3.50
Hydroxocobalamin 1mg/1ml solution for injection ampoules5£11.73
Lactulose 3.1-3.7g/5ml oral solution500£4.95
Mometasone 0.1% ointment30£3.10
Ondansetron 8mg tablets10£4.29
Rivastigmine 3mg capsules28£2.43
Trihexyphenidyl 2mg tablets84£3.14
Trospium chloride 20mg tablets60£11.49

Concessionary prices will be paid against the usual code, no additional endorsements are needed.

Please continue to notify CPNI of any pricing issues you are experiencing via our Medicine Shortage Reporter.

Concessionary prices are also published on the CPNI website.

Kind regards

SENT ON BEHALF OF
GERARD GREENE
Chief Executive
Dear Colleague
The first update of concessionary prices were granted today for January 2025:
DrugPack SizeConcessionary Price
Alfuzosin 2.5mg tablets60£3.80
Calcipotriol 0.005% / Betamethasone dipropionate 0.05% gel60£27.96
Carbimazole 20mg tablets100£3.67
Cefalexin 500mg capsules21£3.18
Chloramphenicol 1% eye ointment4£3.49
Clarithromycin 125mg/5ml oral suspension70£4.72
Clarithromycin 250mg/5ml oral suspension70£8.44
Desogestrel 75microgram tablets84£2.57
Estradiol 10microgram pessaries24£10.68
Fenofibrate micronised 200mg capsules28£3.61
Gabapentin 600mg tablets100£28.99
Isosorbide mononitrate 40mg tablets56£2.53
Isotretinoin 20mg capsules30£12.34
Levetiracetam 750mg tablets60£4.12
Mercaptopurine 50mg tablets25£9.72
Methenamine hippurate 1g tablets60£16.09
Methylphenidate 10mg tablets30£4.13
Morphine sulfate 10mg/1ml solution for injection ampoules10£5.85
Naproxen 250mg gastro-resistant tablets56£9.02
Naproxen 500mg gastro-resistant tablets56£18.95
Nefopam 30mg tablets90£4.09
Olanzapine 7.5mg tablets28£1.32
Oxycodone 5mg/5ml oral solution sugar free250£8.66
Perindopril erbumine 2mg tablets30£1.25
Perindopril erbumine 4mg tablets30£1.45
Pregabalin 200mg capsules84£4.25
Pregabalin 300mg capsules56£2.76
Quetiapine 100mg tablets60£10.17
Rizatriptan 10mg tablets3£9.16
Tacrolimus 0.1% ointment30£25.92
Tacrolimus 0.1% ointment60£47.28
Tadalafil 10mg tablets4£0.99

Concessionary prices will be paid against the usual code, no additional endorsements are needed.

Please continue to notify CPNI of any pricing issues you are experiencing via our Medicine Shortage Reporter.

Concessionary prices are also published on the CPNI website.

Kind regards

SENT ON BEHALF OF
GERARD GREENE
Chief Executive
For the attention of all community pharmacies who are contracted to provide the Pharmacy First Sore Throat Service Winter 24/25
Dear Contractor
  • SPPG have issued correspondence on 14 January 2025 regarding the Pharmacy First Sore Throat Service Winter 2024/25.
  • SPPG have confirmed that the service will be extended until 31 March 2025.
  • Pharmacies may wish to promote the service on social media platforms using the resources available on the BSO website.
  • All resources including the service specification, PGDs, and consultation forms can also be accessed on the BSO website.

Please contact your Pharmacy Advisor at SPPG offices if you have any further queries.

Kind regards

SENT ON BEHALF OF
GERARD GREENE
Chief Executive

Dear Contractor,

The following changes, announced in the Autumn budget, will impact considerably Community Pharmacy payroll costs from April 2025:

Minimum Wage:

1.    The minimum wage for over 21s, known as the National Living Wage, will increase by 6.7%, from £11.44 to £12.21 from 1 April 2025.
2.    For 18- to 20-year-olds, the minimum wage will increase from £8.60 to £10.00.
3.    Apprentices will also see a wage increase, from £6.40 to £7.55 an hour.

National Insurance:

4.    Employer National Insurance contributions (currently 13.8%) are to increase to 15% from April 2025.
5.    The salary threshold where employer National Insurance contributions begin will be reduced to £5,000 per year.
6.    The Employment Allowance for small businesses will be increased from £5,000 to £10,500.

CPNI’s initial estimate indicates approximately £10m additional cost impact for the community pharmacy sector next year.  We have advised SPPG accordingly and are seeking mitigations against these cost increases.  You will also be aware of joint representations having been made by CPNI-BDA-BMA-ONI on this matter ( CPNI CU#241202B).  SPPG and DoH(NI) also recognise that significant changes to National Living Wage (NLW) and National Minimum Wage (NMW) arrangements from 1st April 2025 obligate community pharmacies to review and increase all staff salary/wages from April 2025 and we have been asked by SPPG for assistance in obtaining information from contractors on the impact of the above budget changes on sector payroll costs in 2025/26.

Many of you will have linked with your payroll and/or accountancy advisors to establish the cost impact for you next year and your assistance is therefore sought in relation to providing the anticipated monetary impact of the following payroll costs in 2025/26 for your pharmacy business:

1.    Total increased salary/payroll costs anticipated in 2025/26 compared to the current year.  The impact of the E’er NIC changes referred to above should also be provided.
2.    The number of pharmacy staff that this relates to.
3.    The percentage of the increased costs that relate to staff with any NHS related activity.
4.    The number of pharmacies to which the information relates to.

We previously gathered information relating to the periods 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2023/24 payroll/tax years.  Can we ask that you also include the 2024/25 costs alongside the anticipated 2025/26 costs?

If possible, can you provide an estimate of your payroll (Salary/pension/E’er NIC) cost increases between 2023/24 and 2024/25 to demonstrate the impact of the April 2024 NMW/NLW changes (including the impact those changes had on the payroll cost increases for other higher paid staff members)?

Additional pension contribution costs will also be required in due course given that increased pension costs are also a natural consequence of NMW/NLW increases.

As indicated above your payroll and/or accountancy advisors may be able to help you to provide the information we are seeking.

A number of contractors have already linked with CPNI to provide initial information and we acknowledge and appreciate that.  We know there are many demands on your time at present but would ask that you try to provide the information listed above to office@communitypharmacyni.co.uk no later than Monday 3rd February 2025.

Any information provided to CPNI will treated as private and confidential, it will be internal to CPNI office staff only and it will be shared only with SPPG in an anonymised and collated format for the purposes outlined above.

Please do not hesitate to contact CPNI office should you need additional information or clarification in relation to this request.

Kind regards,

SENT ON BEHALF OF
GERARD GREENE 
Chief Executive
For the attention of Community Pharmacies providing the Autumn 2024 Seasonal Influenza Community Pharmacy Vaccination Service (CPVS)
Dear Contractor
The PHA have issued correspondence on 14 January 2025 regarding an update on the operational detail of the Autumn Influenza Vaccination Programme 2024/25.

SUMMARY

  • The Health Minister has approved a policy change to the influenza vaccination cohorts 2024/25, to include those aged 50-64 years for the remainder of the vaccination programme.
  • The eligible cohorts for the influenza vaccination programme are now confirmed as follows:
    • All those aged 50 – 64 yrs. **new addition**
    • All those aged 65 yrs. and over
    • Care home residents (long stay residential)
    • Those in clinical risk groups aged 6 months – 64 yrs.
    • Pregnant women
    • HSC workers
    • All pre-school children 2 – 4 yrs
    • All primary school children
    • Secondary school children in yrs. 8 – 12  
    • Carers
    • Close contacts of those immunosuppressed
    • High-risk poultry and avian animal health workers
  • The original eligible cohorts should remain a priority over the newly added 50-64 years cohort.
  • The extension of the influenza vaccination cohorts will commence on 15 January 2025 for the remainder of the programme.
  • PHA sessional vaccinators remain available to support the administration of the flu vaccine and can be requested by completing the form here.
  • Those who are healthy and aged 50-64 years should only be vaccinated with QIVc: Flucelvax® Tetra which is in accordance with the PGD.
  • Those aged 65 years and over are to be vaccinated with aQIV: Fluad Tetra®.  Please note: the packaging of aQIV: Fluad Tetra vaccine refers to use in those aged “50 years and older”, however, this vaccine has been procured for the explicit use in those aged 65 years and older as per JCVI advice and in accordance with the PGD.
  • To manage stock it is important that service providers adhere to ordering advice to make best use of remaining stock and ensure the most vulnerable continue to be able to avail of a vaccine.
  • VMS has been updated to facilitate the recording of vaccinations for healthy 50 – 64yr olds who do not fall into any other eligibility criteria. Please ensure you record the correct eligibility cohort and vaccine for each patient.
  • Training materials and the patient information leaflet will be updated to reflect the new cohorts and will be available on the PHA website:

ACTION

Contractors are asked to:

  • Read the PHA correspondence issued on 14 January 2025 regarding an update to the Autumn Influenza Vaccination Programme 2024/25.
  • Share with all relevant members of the team.

If you have any further queries regarding this letter please contact pha.immunisation@hscni.net.

Kind regards

SENT ON BEHALF OF
GERARD GREENE
Chief Executive