The National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 2004

Provision of dispensing services

47.—(1) Without prejudice to any separate right one or more medical practitioners may have under regulation 20 of the Pharmaceutical Regulations (arrangements for provision of pharmaceutical services by doctors)(1), a contractor may provide dispensing services to its registered patients under the contract only if it is authorised or required to do so by the Primary Care Trust in accordance with the following provisions of this paragraph or paragraph 49.

(2) A Primary Care Trust may authorise or require a contractor to provide dispensing services to a registered patient only if that patient—

(a) satisfies one of the conditions in sub-paragraph (3); and

(b) has requested the contractor in writing to provide him with dispensing services.

(3) The conditions referred to in sub-paragraph (2)(a) are that the patient—

(a) satisfies the Primary Care Trust that he would have serious difficulty in obtaining any necessary drugs, medicines or appliances from a pharmacy by reason of distance or inadequacy of means of communication; or

(b) is resident in a controlled locality at a distance of more than 1.6 kilometres from any pharmacy, and both the conditions in sub-paragraph (4) are satisfied in his case.

(4) The conditions referred to in sub-paragraph (3)(b) are that—

(a) the contractor has been granted consent to dispense under paragraph 48 in respect of—

(i) the area in which the patient resides, and

(ii) the contract under which the patient receives primary medical services; and

(b) any conditions imposed in connection with that grant under regulation 12(15) or 13(13)(b) of the Pharmaceutical Regulations as they apply pursuant to paragraph 48(5) or (6) are such as to permit dispensing services to be provided under this paragraph by that contractor to the patient.

(5) If a contractor which has been requested to provide dispensing services by a patient who satisfies one of the conditions in sub-paragraph (3)—

(a) applies to the Primary Care Trust for the right to provide dispensing services to that patient, and sends with its application the patient’s request to the contractor, the Primary Care Trust shall grant its application; or

(b) does not so apply, within the period of 30 days beginning with the date on which the patient made that request, a Primary Care Trust may, subject to sub-paragraph (7), require the contractor to provide dispensing services to that patient, and shall give the contractor notice in writing to that effect.

(6) An application granted by a Primary Care Trust under sub-paragraph (5)(a) shall, with effect from the date of the patient’s request to the contractor, enable that contractor to provide dispensing services to that patient, so long as the contract remains in effect.

(7) A Primary Care Trust shall not, under sub-paragraph (5)(b), require a contractor to provide dispensing services to a patient if the contractor satisfies the Primary Care Trust that—

(a) it does not normally provide dispensing services under the contract; or

(b) in the case of a patient to whom sub-paragraph (3)(b) applies, the patient would not have serious difficulty by reason of distance or inadequacy of means of communication in obtaining drugs, medicines or appliances from a pharmacy.

(8) A Primary Care Trust shall give the contractor reasonable notice—

(a) that it requires it to provide dispensing services to a registered patient in accordance with the contract; or

(b) that, subject to sub-paragraph (9), where a patient no longer satisfies the requirements of sub-paragraph (3), the contractor shall discontinue the provision of dispensing services to that patient.

(9) A notice under sub-paragraph (8)(b)—

(a) shall be subject to any postponement or termination of arrangements to provide dispensing services under this paragraph in accordance with conditions imposed under regulation 12(15) or 13(13) of the Pharmaceutical Regulations as they apply pursuant to paragraph 48(5) or (6); and

(b) shall not be given—

(i) pending the outcome of the resolution of any dispute concerning the decision by a Primary Care Trust to postpone the making or termination of arrangements to provide dispensing services under this paragraph in accordance with conditions referred to in paragraph (a); or

(ii) during the period for bringing an appeal, or pending the determination of any appeal, referred to in regulation 9(10) of the Pharmaceutical Regulations (determination of whether an area is a controlled locality).

(10) A contractor which has been granted the right under this paragraph to provide dispensing services to some or all of its registered patients may provide any necessary dispensing services to a person whom that contractor has accepted as a temporary resident.

(11) In this paragraph, “controlled locality” and “pharmacy” have the same meanings as in the Pharmaceutical Regulations.

(1)

Regulation 20 was amended by S.I. 1998/681, 1999/696, 2001/2888, 2002/2469 and 2002/2861.