Drew Hendry MP (pictured) praises local pharmacies that are going above and beyond in these difficult times.
An additional £5.5 million of funding will be provided to community pharmacies across Scotland and the Highlands to help them cope with increased pressures arising from the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.
Across the country, pharmacy workloads almost doubled during March – with increased prescription orders, staff overtime and a higher level of consultations resulting in additional costs for the service.
The additional funding will be added to the network’s March payments.
Commenting, Highland MP Drew Hendry said:
“Through working with the Community Pharmacy Scotland, my colleagues in the Scottish Parliament have agreed this initial package of additional funding for community pharmacies to help them meet some of the costs of responding to COVID-19, and to allow them to continue to meet the increased demand on their crucial services.
“I wish to sincerely thank all community pharmacy teams across the Highlands for their dedication and the support they are providing to vulnerable people.
“They are doing an invaluable job to ensure people continue to receive vital medicines and care through this period of unprecedented challenge for the NHS, and their hard work should not go unnoticed.
“Additionally, given the exceptional situation we find ourselves in, I am pleased that community pharmacies are to remain open on Good Friday and Easter Monday – where it is possible to do so.
“This will help to alleviate some pressure from out-of-hours services while allowing people extra time to collect prescriptions and access services.”
