Written question WQ96450
- Asked by
- Janet Finch-SaundersConservative
- To be answered by
- Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care
- Tabled
- Due
- Answered
- Time to answer
- 9 days
Question
What steps is the Cabinet Secretary taking to ensure that prescription collection is available on weekends in light of some pharmacies reducing their opening hours?
Answer
Answered by Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care
Health boards are required to assess the pharmaceutical needs of their populations and ensure pharmaceutical services are available to meet those needs. Where there is a significant change in the pharmaceutical provision, the health board must review the availability of pharmaceutical services in the area to ensure they continue to meet needs and act accordingly.
During 2024-25 we made up to £0.7m in capital grants available to pharmacies to invest in automation, improve their premises, and add new private consultation areas, supporting them to deliver the type of pharmacy services people in Wales need. This capital investment scheme has launched again for 2025-26, making a further £0.7m of capital grants available to the sector.
In previous years, capital funding has supported 30 pharmacies across all areas of Wales to install prescription collection machines, ensuring that convenient prescription collection is available to the public when these pharmacies are closed.