The UK government has announced that patients in England will soon be able to seek treatment for additional conditions at their local pharmacy without needing a GP referral. Under a £340 million deal, independent prescribing will be expanded, enabling pharmacists with relevant qualifications to make decisions and prescribe medicines on the spot.
Expansion of Pharmacy First
The changes, set to take effect this autumn, aim to alleviate pressure on family doctors. The Pharmacy First scheme, which currently covers seven common conditions—sore throat, earache, sinusitis, shingles, impetigo, infected bites, and urinary tract infections—will be extended to include five more health issues, though specific details have not yet been released. Patients can also visit pharmacies for eye, ear, oral, and dental care, as well as digestive problems.
Health minister Stephen Kinnock stated, “We are making the most of our highly skilled pharmacists, while boosting access to services and giving patients more care right on their doorstep. Independent prescribing will play a major part in delivering this shift, easing pressures on GPs, cutting unnecessary red tape and helping patients get the right care closer to home.”
Support from NHS and pharmacy bodies
Dr Amanda Doyle, national director for primary care and community services at NHS England, commented: “Expanding independent prescribing will help make better use of the clinical expertise within our community pharmacy teams, helping patients get the right care in the right place while helping reducing pressure on other NHS services.”
According to the Department of Health and Social Care, more than 3.3 million Pharmacy First consultations were conducted between March 2025 and February 2026, a 43% increase from the previous 12 months.
Janet Morrison, chief executive of Community Pharmacy England, welcomed the agreement: “We welcome the agreement reached for community pharmacies in 2026/27, which includes an important commitment to a programme of reform for the sector. It also opens the door to pharmacist prescribing – a first step towards making fuller use of their clinical expertise. We hope these changes, accompanied by appropriate future investment, will help pharmacies to play an even greater role in supporting patients, improving access to care, and helping people get the advice and treatment they need in their communities.”
Concerns over funding
However, the National Pharmacy Association (NPA) expressed concerns that the deal “does very little” to close funding gaps in the sector and called for urgent talks with Health Secretary James Murray. NPA chairman Dr Olivier Picard said: “We hope this announcement will bring some immediate relief to pharmacies who are being hit by crippling new costs. However, we remain concerned that it does very little to close the £2.5 billion funding gap that the NHS itself identified a year ago.
“Independent prescribing enables pharmacists to deliver accessible, high-quality care to patients on their doorsteps. Expanding prescribing services available for patients and using the skills pharmacists have already is common sense. However, although this points in the right direction, it is nowhere near ambitious enough to transform patient access to care, nor make full use of pharmacists’ skills and qualifications beyond minor ailments to manage longer-term conditions.
“We are also concerned that the current funding levels mean that many pharmacies will struggle to take this development forwards, risking its success. Pharmacies cannot sustain yet more loss-making work.”
