The Welsh government has pledged to increase community pharmacy funding by £1.4 million for 2018-19.

News of the rise was announced by Vaughan Gething, the minister for health and social services, who described community pharmacy as “a fundamental part of a strong primary care service.”

Drawing comparisons in attitudes between the Welsh and English governments towards community pharmacy funding, Gething said in a statement: “In contrast to the position in England, where pharmacies have been faced with significant cuts to funding, closures and a failure of the government in England to recognise the sector’s value, in Wales we have maintained our investment in these vital community assets.”

Welcoming the increase in funding, Suzanne Scott-Thomas, chair of the Welsh Pharmacy Board, said: “We recognise that radical and sustainable transformation of care can only be achieved through investment in new and innovative services, above and beyond the existing allocation of resources.

“We are delighted (the Welsh government) have chosen to invest in community pharmacy in Wales. This will support patient access to appropriate care in the community and make medicines use safer in Wales.”

Gething added: "The additional funding will also secure further changes to the contractual arrangements in 2019-20 to improve quality, medicines safety and the availability of new and innovative services from pharmacies and which take pressure off other parts of the NHS."

Picture: JohnnyLye (iStock)