Secretary of State declaration of emergency extension

The declaration of an emergency requiring the flexible provision of pharmaceutical services which was introduced to help maintain pharmacy services during the COVID-19 outbreak, has been extended to 30th September 2021.

This means that contractors are still allowed to make temporary changes to opening hours or temporary closures where, first, adequate reasons for these changes have been provided to NHS England and NHS Improvement (NHSE&I), second, NHSE&I have been given 24 hours’ notice of these changes and, third, NHSE&I has agreed to these changes or has not objected to them.

Contractors, in the absence of a response from NHSE&I, after they have given 24 hours’ notice, may start the flexible provision of opening hours. However, contractors must return to normal opening hours if their request is subsequently refused by NHSE&I.

The extension to the dispensation from patient’s charge exemption signatures on prescriptions and dispensing tokens has been extended till 31st August 2021.

Further information about the emergency regulations is available on our network resilience page.