The National Health Service (Pharmaceutical and Local Pharmaceutical Services) Regulations 2013

Consultation on pharmaceutical needs assessments U.K.

8.—(1) When making an assessment for the purposes of publishing a pharmaceutical needs assessment, each HWB (HWB1) must consult the following about the contents of the assessment it is making—

(a) any Local Pharmaceutical Committee for its area (including any Local Pharmaceutical Committee for part of its area or for its area and that of all or part of the area of one or more other HWBs);

(b) any Local Medical Committee for its area (including any Local Medical Committee for part of its area or for its area and that of all or part of the area of one or more other HWBs);

(c) any persons on the pharmaceutical lists and any dispensing doctors list for its area;

(d) any LPS chemist in its area with whom the NHSCB has made arrangements for the provision of any local pharmaceutical services;

(e) any Local Healthwatch organisation for its area, and any other patient, consumer or community group in its area which in the opinion of HWB1 has an interest in the provision of pharmaceutical services in its area; and

(f) any NHS trust or NHS foundation trust in its area;

(g) the NHSCB; and

(h) any neighbouring HWB.

(2) The persons mentioned in paragraph (1) must together be consulted at least once during the process of making the assessment on a draft of the proposed pharmaceutical needs assessment.

(3) Where a HWB is consulted on a draft under paragraph (2), if there is a Local Pharmaceutical Committee or Local Medical Committee for its area or part of its area that is different to a Local Pharmaceutical Committee or Local Medical Committee consulted under paragraph (1)(a) or (b), that HWB—

(a) must consult that Committee before making its response to the consultation; and

(b) must have regard to any representations received from the Committee when making its response to the consultation.

(4) The persons consulted on the draft under paragraph (2) must be given a minimum period of 60 days for making their response to the consultation, beginning with the day by which all those persons have been served with the draft.

(5) For the purposes of paragraph (4), a person is to be treated as served with a draft if that person is notified by HWB1 of the address of a website on which the draft is available and is to remain available (except due to accident or unforeseen circumstances) throughout the period for making responses to the consultation.

(6) If a person consulted on a draft under paragraph (2)—

(a) is treated as served with the draft by virtue of paragraph (5); or

(b) has been served with copy of the draft in an electronic form,

but requests a copy of the draft in hard copy form, HWB1 must as soon as is practicable and in any event within 14 days supply a hard copy of the draft to that person (free of charge).