National Health Service Act 2006

164 Remuneration for persons providing pharmaceutical services

(1) The remuneration to be paid to persons who provide pharmaceutical services under this Part must be determined by determining authorities.

(2) Determining authorities may also determine the remuneration to be paid to persons who provide those services in respect of the instruction of any person in matters relating to those services.

(3) For the purposes of this section and section 165 determining authorities are—

(a) the Secretary of State, and

(b) so far as authorised by him to exercise the functions of determining authorities, any Primary Care Trust or other person appointed by him in an instrument.

(4) The instrument mentioned in subsection (3)(b) is called in this section an “instrument of appointment”.

(5) An instrument of appointment—

(a) may contain requirements with which a determining authority appointed by that instrument must comply in making determinations, and

(b) may be contained in regulations.

(6) Subject to this section and section 165, regulations may make provision about determining remuneration under this section and may in particular impose requirements with which determining authorities must comply in making, or in connection with, determinations (including requirements as to consultation and publication).

(7) Regulations may provide that determinations may be made by reference to any of—

(a) rates or conditions of remuneration of any persons or any descriptions of persons which are fixed or determined, or will be fixed or determined, otherwise than by way of a determination under this section,

(b) scales, indices or other data of any description specified in the regulations.

(8) Where regulations provide as mentioned in subsection (7)(b), they may provide that any determination which falls to be made by reference to a scale, index or other data may be made by reference to the scale, index or data—

(a) in the form current at the time of the determination, and

(b) in any subsequent form taking effect after that time.

(9) Regulations may—

(a) provide that determining authorities may make determinations which have effect in relation to remuneration in respect of a period beginning on or after a date specified in the determination, which may be the date of the determination or an earlier or later date, but may be an earlier date only if, taking the determination as a whole, it is not detrimental to the persons to whose remuneration it relates,

(b) provide that any determination which does not specify such a date has effect in relation to remuneration in respect of a period beginning—

(i) if it is required to be published, on the date of publication,

(ii) if it is not so required, on the date on which it is made.

(10) A reference in this section or section 165 to a determination is to a determination of remuneration under this section.