In a new poll by the National Pharmacy Association (NPA), 86% of pharmacies across the UK reported they had been able to supply Aspirin to their patients in the week 13^th to 20^th January.

Pharmacies have told the NPA that they have been tightly rationing supplies of Aspirin for those patients with the most acute heart conditions or those in need of emergency prescriptions.

Patients needing a regular supply of dispersible aspirin include those with a history of strokes, heart disease, chronic kidney disease and diabetes.

A number of pharmacists have also said they have stopped making aspirin available for over the counter sales.

50.9 million items of Aspirin were prescribed in the UK between January 2025 and October 2025, making it one of the most commonly prescribed drugs in the country.

The NPA is urging the government to accelerate plans to scrap dangerous and antiquated legislation that prevents pharmacists from making substitutions to prescriptions where a prescribed medicine is out of stock.

The current rules, introduced in 1968, forbid pharmacists from doing things such as switching a prescription from tablets to capsules or even the flavour of liquid medication.

NPA analysis also shows the price of aspirin has soared in the last two months due to the shortages, with a packet of Aspirin 75mg dispersible tablets going from 18p earlier last year to £3.90 this month.

At the moment, the NHS will only reimburse pharmacies £2.18 a packet, meaning an average pharmacy will lose £1.72 each time it is dispensed, on the rare occasion where stock can be found.

The NPA have called on the government to reform the broken pharmacy contract which regularly leaves pharmacists dispensing NHS prescriptions at a loss.

Olivier Picard, Chair of the National Pharmacy Association said: “We’re concerned about reports of pharmacies being unable to order in stocks of aspirin and the implications this might have for the patients they serve.

“For those pharmacies that can get hold of supply, costs will far exceed what they will be reimbursed by the NHS, yet more signs of a fundamentally broken pharmacy contract in desperate need of reform by the government.

“We’ve long called for pharmacists to be able to make substitutions where a medicine is not in stock and it is safe to supply an alternative.

“The status quo is not only frustrating for patients, it is also dangerous.

“It is madness to send someone back to their GP to get a prescription changed when a safe alternative is in stock. It risks a patient either delaying taking vital medication or forgoing it altogether, which poses a clear risk to patient safety.”

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Representatives for the NPA said they felt hopeful after the meeting but urged the Health Minister’s goodwill to be translated into something tangible for pharmacists.

The historic ballot, run by the NPA last year, saw pharmacies across the region vote overwhelmingly in favour of collective action to reduce services, and followed the shock and dismay felt in the sector at the Autumn Budget. Now, as these hikes in National Living Wage and employers’ NICs become a reality this month, the NPA has called for action to help avoid pharmacy closures and a wider impact on the primary health care sector here.

Representation Manager at the NPA in Northern Ireland, Anne McAlister told NR that the meeting came on the back of activity in the last year and the experiences of their members, who are finding the financial situation very, very tough.

“The money that is coming through our contract and is being paid by the Department of Health does not meet the drugs bill at the end of the month,” said Anne.

“More and more businesses are having to self-finance as there is not enough coming in to cover the bills – staffing, heating, lighting etc. The DoH is aware of that and of course these new rises will compound all these difficulties.”

In meeting with Health Minister, Mike Nesbitt MLA, the NPA was seeking a commitment there is some light at the end of the tunnel.

“We were seeking something – is there actual funding or some way of alleviating some of the difficulties,” said Anne.

“The Health Minister is very cognisant of the impact of these new rises and is working hard to see what can be put in place.”

Additionally, the UK Treasury is not in a position to provide funding for NICs and NLW increases, despite a recommendation that the Treasury supports primary care partners. In the meeting with the Health Minister, Anne said the NPA asked for clarity on his department’s priorities.

“These are to tackle waiting lists and cancer referrals and he is aware of the role that community pharmacy plays in those, in terms of easing burden on primary care,” added Anne.

Chair of the NPA, Nick Kaye was also present at the meeting. An independent prescriber in his community pharmacy in Cornwall, he explained to the Health Minister and those in attendance of the red flag referral route available to him.

“The equivalent commission in Cornwall is quite innovative and adaptive. Nick explained how with his red flag referral route, he has a way of getting an individual escalated into the system promptly,” said Anne.

“That has many positive impacts for the patients of course, but also in addressing the complexity of the system. The Health Minister was very interested in that.”

A new survey by the NPA found that pharmacies here are unable to dispense a prescription at least once a day due to the growing crisis in medicine supply.

Some 500 pharmacies were surveyed and 100% said they were unable to dispense a prescription at least once per day because of supply problems, and 95% of pharmacies reported that patients had come to their pharmacy at least once a day to get medicines that they had failed to obtain elsewhere due to supply problems.

Meanwhile, 96% of pharmacies in NI were unable to dispense a prescription at least once a day despite having a safe alternative formulation in stock. This is due to current legislation preventing pharmacists from making substitutions or even a change in strength if a medicine is not available.

Presently, if a medicine is unavailable in a pharmacy, the pharmacist is not permitted to make a substitution even if they have a safe alternative in stock, except in very limited circumstances where a Serious Shortage Protocol has been issued by the NHS.

The NPA is warning the current situation poses a risk to patient safety, with patients potentially going without vital medication, presenting a serious risk to their health.

READ THE FULL FEATURE WITH ANNE MCALISTER IN THE APRIL ISSUE OF NEIGHBOURHOOD RETAILER HERE

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As retail readies itself for bracing business costs, several business owners within the industry reveal the impact the rises will have on them and their business, as Labour’s Autumn Budget takes effect.

Award-winning Trainor Bros SPAR Poyntzpass prides itself on its commitment to providing the best service and offerings to its customers, as Store Manager David Lavery outlines in a special store profile.

Meanwhile, amidst a raft of challenges in community pharmacy, the National Pharmacy Association met with Health Minister, Mike Nesbitt to impress upon him the seriousness of the situation.

Elsewhere, we have a special interview with Chair of National Lottery operator, Allwyn, Justin King as he celebrates the uniqueness of independent retailers across the region.

YOU CAN ALSO GET ENTERING THE 2025 NR AWARDS AND READ MUCH MORE IN THE APRIL ISSUE BY CLICKING HERE

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The NPA is warning that pharmacies in Northern Ireland, could face at least £10 million of unplanned costs and risk being forced to cut back their services or in some cases consider closing altogether without urgent action from the government.

Many pharmacies are reporting of bills of tens of thousands of pounds which are unfunded, on top of managing the impact of funding freezes, leading to a number of closures.

On top of this, pharmacies also face increased business rates, further pushing up costs.

Neighbourhood Retailer first reported on this in March 2024 when a Belfast pharmacist drew attention to the fact that pharmacists across Northern Ireland were being stretched beyond their financial limits, as pressures of the last few years come to a head, and indeed were dispensing medicines at a loss.

Paul Savage, who owns Woodbourne Pharmacy on the Stewartstown Road, told NR that a 10% ‘clawback’ applied by the Department of Health was compounding the situation.

The revelation came after a Stormont Health Committee was told there was an urgent funding crisis in the sector, which is impacting the financial viability of community pharmacy here and could place the supply of medicines in pharmacy at risk.

Unlike other businesses, pharmacies are unable to increase their prices in order to meet the sort of unexpected rises set to come into force in April.

The NPA has said it will recommend its members take collective action, including cutting back their opening hours for patients, if these costs are not met by the government imminently.

Unlike GPs and other parts of the NHS, the government have yet to commit to meeting rises in National Insurance and National Living Wage announced in the Budget and are due to come into force in just five weeks’ time.

Around 90 per cent of an average pharmacy’s work is funded via the NHS, including the cost of supplying medication as well providing vaccination services, such as the flu and Covid-19 vaccine.

In this historic ballot run by the NPA, 99.7 per cent of said they would be prepared to take collective action for the first time in their history if their funding situation did not improve.

Nick Kaye, Chair of the National Pharmacy Association, said: “Pharmacies face a financial cliff edge at the beginning of April, with a triple whammy of rising National Insurance, National Living Wage and business rates all arriving at once.

“At the moment, they still have no certainty if any of these costs will be met, despite assurances for other parts of the health system including our GP colleagues.

“Pharmacies have shut in record numbers and those that are left are currently hanging on by their fingernails.

“They are growing increasingly concerned about their future and without imminent funding certainty from the government we may be left with little choice but to recommend collective action to ensure pharmacies can survive for the patients who rely on them.”

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The historic ballot, which saw pharmacies in Northern Ireland voting in favour of collective action to reduce services, follows the shock and dismay felt in the sector at the recent Budget.

In a special interview with NR, Representation Manager at the NPA, Anne McAlister reveals the frustration with the level of funding and confirms that Health Minister Mike Nesbitt has agreed to meet with the trade body in the new year to take forward discussions.

“There are very concrete proposals and we appreciate how much pressure the Health Service in its entirety is under, but it’s about allowing pharmacy to do what it can and do it appropriately,” said Anne.

Stressing that funding for community pharmacy has been up and down, the level of funding is now insufficient to meet the demand of services in Northern Ireland and the impact of the continued lack of funding is now starting to bear fruit.

YOU CAN READ THE FULL INTERVIEW WITH ANNE MCALISTER IN THE NOVEMBER-DECEMBER ISSUE OF NEIGHBOURHOOD RETAILER – COMING SOON.

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