Optipharm Pharmacy is “pressing for clarification” on the reasons behind its suspension from the Pharmacy First service “through legal channels”, C+D can reveal.
In September, NHS England in London (NHSE-L) told C+D that some four pharmacies – Optipharm, Overton & Pickup, Meacher, Higgins & Thomas, and Cavendish– had been suspended from the service.
Read more: Top pharmacies suspended from Pharmacy First scheme
These pharmacies had been the leading providers of Pharmacy First minor illness referral consultations, according to NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) data.
Now, Optipharm owner Rafik Hammouda has told C+D that its “barrister is now actively preparing the case, which has now been formally filed in the High Court of Justice”.
“Without clear reason”
“A key concern is the ongoing suspension of our pharmacies from the Pharmacy First scheme without any clear reason provided, other than our pharmacies’ high performance,” he said earlier this month (November 8).
Hammouda is the sole director and shareholder of Wembley Park Pharmacie and 7Day Chemiist and owns Optipharm, Overton & Pickup, and Meacher, Higgins & Thomas as of June this year.
Read more: Inside the pharmacy doing 3,000 Pharmacy First consultations a month
“We remain without updates from the integrated care board (ICB) on the specific reasons behind this action,” he said.
“Our barristers continue to press the ICB for clarity, but…no rationale for the suspension has been provided. We find ourselves quite frankly perplexed by the lack of communication on this matter,” he added.
Read more: Revealed: The top ten Pharmacy First minor illness service providers
“This lack of transparency is particularly troubling and we are pressing for clarification through legal channels,” he said.
A spokesperson for NHSE-L told C+D that it had not had any contact with legal representatives for Optipharm but that it was unable to comment on an ongoing investigation.
Over 3k monthly consultations
In July, NHSBSA dispensing contractor data revealed that Optipharm Pharmacy in Wembley completed 3,292 Pharmacy First minor illness referral consultations in April alone.
The staggering figure – the highest in the country – was well above the 17 clinical pathway consultations that the average pharmacy completed that month.
At the time, Hammouda told C+D that the way it operates is “quite different from running a traditional retail pharmacy”, employing “up to 13 pharmacists at any one time” each conducting “six remote consultations per hour”, he said.
Read more: UPDATED: Pharmacy First thresholds slashed until March
NHSBSA data for May showed that Optipharm claimed another 2,529 Pharmacy First minor illness referral consultations, before its suspension from June.
Meanwhile, NHS England (NHSE) last month announced that the minimum number of Pharmacy First consultations pharmacies must complete to qualify for a monthly payment will been reduced until March next year.
