Following discussions between Community Pharmacy England and the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) regarding medicine pricing issues reported by pharmacy owners, the Department has today (15/03/2024) announced the following initial list of price concessions for March 2024:
Drug
Pack size
Price concession
Amiodarone 200mg tablets
28
£1.83
Aripiprazole 10mg tablets
28
£7.89
Aripiprazole 15mg tablets
28
£8.47
Baclofen 5mg/5ml oral solution sugar free
300
£3.64
Betamethasone valerate 0.1% cream
30
£1.43
Betamethasone valerate 0.1% cream
100
£4.99
Bimatoprost 100micrograms/ml eye drops
3
£4.46
Bimatoprost 300micrograms/ml / Timolol 5mg/ml eye drops
3
£8.79
Bumetanide 1mg tablets
28
£2.35
Cefalexin 250mg capsules
28
£2.06
Co-careldopa 12.5mg/50mg tablets
90
£4.25
Co-codamol 15mg/500mg tablets
100
£3.25
Dexamfetamine 5mg tablets
28
£22.83
Digoxin 125microgram tablets
28
£2.75
Digoxin 250microgram tablets
28
£2.75
Digoxin 62.5microgram tablets
28
£2.75
Docusate 50mg/5ml oral solution sugar free
300
£17.79
Donepezil 5mg tablets
28
£1.50
Dorzolamide 20mg/ml / Timolol 5mg/ml eye drops 0.2ml unit dose preservative free
60
£25.03
Duloxetine 20mg gastro-resistant capsules
28
£8.88
Duloxetine 40mg gastro-resistant capsules
56
£11.25
Escitalopram 10mg tablets
28
£1.27
Estradiol 10microgram pessaries
24
£10.75
Ezetimibe 10mg tablets
28
£12.86
Haloperidol 1.5mg tablets
28
£3.66
Hydrocortisone 2.5% cream
15
£47.25
Irbesartan 300mg tablets
28
£1.35
Isotretinoin 20mg capsules
30
£10.78
Lamotrigine 100mg tablets
56
£3.20
Lamotrigine 200mg tablets
56
£4.81
Lamotrigine 25mg tablets
56
£1.92
Lamotrigine 50mg tablets
56
£2.84
Lansoprazole 30mg gastro-resistant capsules
28
£1.30
Memantine 10mg tablets
28
£1.30
Memantine 10mg/ml oral solution sugar free
50
£45.45
Memantine 20mg tablets
28
£1.58
Metformin 1g modified-release tablets
56
£2.71
Metformin 500mg modified-release tablets
56
£1.83
Metoprolol 50mg tablets
28
£3.75
Midazolam 10mg/2ml solution for injection ampoules
10
£5.39
Mometasone 50micrograms/dose nasal spray
140
£9.20
Montelukast 10mg tablets
28
£2.05
Montelukast 5mg chewable tablets sugar free
28
£1.21
Morphine sulfate 10mg/5ml oral solution
300
£5.45
Orlistat 120mg capsules
84
£23.35
Pregabalin 150mg capsules
56
£2.25
Primidone 250mg tablets
100
£86.95
Risperidone 1mg/ml oral solution sugar free
100
£3.13
Risperidone 2mg tablets
60
£1.99
Ropinirole 500microgram tablets
28
£15.75
Simvastatin 20mg tablets
28
£1.10
Simvastatin 80mg tablets
28
£1.61
Terbinafine 1% cream
15
£3.51
Terbinafine 1% cream
30
£7.02
Trazodone 150mg tablets
28
£2.14
Trospium chloride 20mg tablets
60
£11.36
Zolmitriptan 2.5mg tablets
6
£16.45
Zolmitriptan 2.5mg tablets
12
£32.90
Zonisamide 50mg capsules
56
£16.73
Please note: We are still in discussion with DHSC on a number other medicines affected by pricing issues this month. We will issue further updates as soon as we hear back from the Department.
No additional endorsements are required for price concessions. A price concession only applies for the month it is granted; any prices agreed for concessions requested late in the month will roll over into the following month.
We encourage pharmacies to report any problems obtaining a Part VIII product at or below the stated Drug Tariff price, using the online feedback form on the Community Pharmacy England website. Please include full details of the supplier and price paid for any products sourced above the Drug Tariff price. We will investigate the extent of the problem and, if appropriate, discuss the issue with DHSC.
Please subscribe to our mailing list to receive email updates of any price concessions.
Further information on price concessions and FAQs about the process involved can be found on our website (cpe.org.uk/priceconcessions) To hear more on how the current price concessions system operates, pharmacy teams can now access a recording of our recent Medicines Supply and Concessions Briefing webinar here.
Improvements to the price concession system
Following significant concerns raised by pharmacies about the unsustainable level of prices imposed by DHSC in second half of 2022, it was agreed that an urgent review of the price concession setting system would take place.
Since this announcement, we have sent a strong and clear message back to Government that pharmacies cannot continue to subsidise the NHS medicines bill. Following the review of the concessionary price process, a package of measures has been developed to improve the system.
One of the solutions agreed between us and DHSC is that from 1st April 2023, all products granted a concessionary price will be classified as ‘Discount Not Deducted’ for the month(s) in which they are on concession.
In May 2023, DHSC implemented a process to roll over to the following month any agreed prices for concessions requested on or after the 23rd of the month.
Furthermore, from April 2024, a new retrospective top-up payment system will apply to products granted very low concessionary prices by DHSC when compared to the average purchase prices identified via the Margins survey. Further information on the top-up mechanism can be found here.
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