NHS England (NHSE) and the government must publish its economic review of community pharmacy for the sake of transparency in contract negotiations, the two independent pharmacy organisations have demanded.

The review, promised as part of the 2022-24 pharmacy contract, aims to find out the 'full economic costs of delivering NHS pharmaceutical services' and whether NHS community pharmacy businesses are sustainable under the current funding model.

NHSE commissioned Frontier Economics and IQVIA to collect data from pharmacy owners across the sector and carry out the review.

According to Community Pharmacy England (CPE), work began in April 2024 and final outputs were to be expected in 'early 2025'.

And Chris Pilsbury, senior director of UK information offerings at IQVIA, told the Healthcare Distribution Alliance (HDA) conference last month to 'look out for' the report in 'January or early February'.

But pharmacy bodies are concerned that the report is still yet to be published, despite talks for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 pharmacy contract now underway.

The Independent Pharmacies Association (IPA) and the National Pharmacy Association (NPA), which both represent independent community pharmacy contractors, issued calls last night and this morning, respectively, for the immediate publication of the report.

Dr Leyla Hannbeck, IPA chief executive, said that when it came to the ongoing funding negotiations, 'the stakes have never been higher' and that 'it is a matter of life and death for many pharmacy businesses'.

'We are, therefore asking that these discussions are made transparent and that the sector has an opportunity to understand the process based on which the officials have arrived at the deal offered and have the opportunity to feedback.'

She added: 'The IPA went public in 2023 with the figure of the shortfall of £1.2 billion a year to the global sum. At the end of last year we announced that the shortfall has risen to over £1.7 billion and continues to rise.

'We are, therefore asking that the results of the economic review are published and our sector has a view of this as soon as possible.

'Surely the authorities must take these results, which they commissioned themselves, into consideration for the upcoming 2025/2026 funding cycle,' she added.

This morning, the NPA also called for the review to be published.

Nick Kaye, NPA chair, said: 'It would be outrageous to suppress publication of a government-commissioned report which is expected to lay bare the perilous financial state of a vital part of the nation’s health infrastructure.'

He added: 'The government inherited a crisis in pharmacy funding and will need to take strong action to maintain access to medicines.

'At a time when pharmacies are closing at an alarming rate and those that remain are being forced to cut opening hours to stay open we need full and immediate transparency about the funding required to protect the pharmacy network upon which millions rely.

'Pharmacies need an urgent conclusion to consultations on pharmacy funding that protects the network that is so vital to millions of people. They cannot wait.

'We need government-commissioned analysis on pharmacy funding to be published now. It would be a scandal to keep that evidence buried secret and leave MPs, pharmacies and the public in the dark.'

NHSE and the government were contacted for comment.