Pharmacies spending ‘longer than ever’ managing medicines supply issues

Almost three-quarters (74%) of pharmacy owners in England have said their business is spending ‘longer than ever before’ to procure medicines amid worsening supply issues, a survey has revealed.

Community Pharmacy England’s 2025 annual pressures survey has added weight to ongoing concerns over medicines supply challenges and the impact this is having on both the profession and patients.

The survey of more than 4,300 pharmacies in England and more than 1,600 pharmacy team members suggests there has been ‘no improvement’ in supply issues since the poll was first launched in 2022.

Key findings show the majority (95%) of pharmacy teams report that patients are still being inconvenienced by ongoing medicines shortages and almost three-quarters (73%) said this was putting patients’ health at risk.

A further 96% suggested that patient frustration was a ‘common consequence’ of supply issues, with 79% reporting incidents of patient aggression when medicines were unavailable or delayed.

And some 86% of pharmacy owners reported that shortages were forcing patients to visit multiple pharmacies in search of their medicines.

CPE warned the issue of medicines shortages had become a ‘distressing new normal’ for the sector and said pharmacists needed more flexibility during shortages and a ‘fairer financial arrangement’ for the medicines they supply.

According to the survey results, every day, pharmacy teams are spending hours trying to source medicines for patients.

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Around four in 10 (39%) of pharmacy staff now spend one to two hours each day doing this, with over a quarter (26%) spending even longer than two hours, CPE found.

Concerningly, almost half (49%) of pharmacy owners said patient services were being ‘negatively affected by pressures on their business’ and an overwhelming 94% said this was directly linked to medicine supply problems as a root cause.

CPE chief executive Janet Morrison said: ‘Our survey shows that as medicine supply issues remain a daily reality across the country, the risk to patient health has become a distressing new normal.

‘Delays in receiving medicines not only disrupt patients’ treatment but can also cause unnecessary stress and potential harm to their health.’

She warned that the ‘ongoing time and effort required to manage shortages also adds pressure on pharmacy teams, who are already working at full stretch’.

The survey results suggest a system that is ‘stuck at breaking point’, said Ms Morrison, who warned the situation was the ‘result of deeper issues’ within the UK medicines market, including product discontinuations and global supply chain challenges.

CPE also warned that ‘consistently low medicine prices in the UK have made the market less appealing to manufacturers, further weakening the resilience of the supply system’.

‘Our survey findings provide yet more evidence that medicine supply problems haven’t disappeared – it will take sustained action to resolve this crisis and ensure patients can access the medicines they need, when and where they need them,’ added Ms Morrison.

Fin McCaul, a community pharmacy owner in Greater Manchester, said: ‘Every day we’re facing immense challenges with medicine shortages that are not our fault, and which we are powerless to resolve.

‘It’s not just a matter of running out of stock: patients are rightly frustrated, and their health is being harmed.’

He explained how pharmacy teams were being ‘caught in the middle’ and ‘spending hours calling suppliers and contacting GPs, trying to find alternatives, while also trying to keep patients informed’.

‘The constant uncertainty is affecting both our staff and patients and each year; it only seems to get worse,’ added Mr McCaul.

‘We’re doing the best we can, but the pressure is overwhelming. We hope things improve soon, as the stress is taking its toll on everyone.’

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Ruth Rankine, director of the Primary Care Network at the NHS Confederation, said: ‘This new survey paints a very worrying picture of the challenges patients are facing getting hold of essential medications, which could put their health at risk.

‘It also highlights the increased burden being placed on pharmacists and their staff, in terms of managing patient concerns and sourcing alternatives both of which take them away from delivering patient care.

‘We have a highly skilled workforce within community pharmacy whose role is critical to achieving the government’s ambition to shift more care closer to home, if they are enabled to work at the top of their licence.’

Chair of the National Pharmacy Association Olivier Picard said: ‘As this survey shows, pharmacies are at the sharp end of medicines shortages and frequently have to turn away distressed and frustrated patients.’

He reiterated the need for greater flexibility when it comes to shortages, including by enabling pharmacists to supply an appropriate alternative.

‘It is particularly frustrating for pharmacists to be unable to meet a clear need when they have a perfectly safe and effective solution in their pharmacy already,’ said Mr Picard.

‘It is madness to send someone back to their GP to get a prescription changed, and it risks a patient either delaying taking vital medication or forgoing it altogether, which poses a clear risk to patient safety.

‘The government must allow pharmacists – who are highly trained health care practitioners – to use their professional judgment to supply an appropriate alternative medication when the prescribed version is unavailable.’

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A recent NPA survey found that 96% of pharmacies were unable to dispense a prescription at least once a day despite having a clinically appropriate alternative formulation in stock.

This was due to current legislation preventing pharmacists from making substitutions or even a change in strength if a medicine is not available, unless they are supplying in accordance with an SSP.

Last week the Department of Health and Social Care suggested it had ‘no plans’ to conduct a review of the impact of medicine supply chain shortages on community pharmacies.

Severe shortages of several medicines have been revealed by supply notifications from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) this month, including diabetes treatments and anti-depressants.