The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (“RPS”) has urged the Government to consider a law change regarding HRT prescriptions. Currently, many types of hormone-replacement therapy (“HRT”) are in high demand and the short supply is not meeting this, leaving some women who rely on this medicine to have reported to be suicidal. The RPS’s proposal would aim to ease the difficulties many women are facing whilst going through the menopause.
What is the solution?
The RPS wants pharmacists in England to be able to have the ability to alter GP HRT prescriptions and make like for like medicine swaps when this is suitable. However, currently pharmacists must dispense the exact product and amount of medication on the prescription made by the GP, and this is strictly rigid. This means, if a prescription is not available, a substitute cannot be given out without consulting the GP who had prescribed the medicine, by changing the law pharmacists could be more flexible in their approach. A survey conducted by the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee suggests medicine supply-chain problems are becoming a daily issue for pharmacies, with two-thirds of the 5,000 they spoke with reporting this. This is a growing concern. In England, HRT prescriptions have more than doubled since 2017, and demand is continuing to exceed supply levels. RPS president Prof Claire Anderson said:
“Difficulties in accessing HRT unfairly impacts women, affects their mental health and worsens health inequalities. One solution would be to enable pharmacists to make minor changes to a prescription when something is out of stock. This is faster for patients and more efficient for the NHS.”
What the Government has said
The Government has said it is determined to increase supplies of products in order to help meet the high demand. Minister for Women’s Health Maria Caulfield said:
“There are over 70 HRT products available in the UK, most of which remain in good supply, however we are aware of some issues with women being unable to access certain products. We will be appointing a new HRT supply chairperson, and convening an urgent meeting of suppliers to look at ways we can work together to improve supply.”
As a result, manufacturers are being encouraged to increase supplies of various products including hormone-gel product Oestrogel.
