The National Health Service (Pharmaceutical and Local Pharmaceutical Services) Regulations 2013

Improvements or better access to the current service: additional matters to which [F1 NHS England] must have regard U.K.

17.— [F2 (1) If—

(a) [F1 NHS England] receives a routine application and is required to determine whether granting it, or granting it in respect of some only of the services specified in it, would secure improvements, or better access, to pharmaceutical services, or pharmaceutical services of a specified type, in the area of the relevant HWB; and

(b) the improvements or better access that would be secured have or has been included in the relevant pharmaceutical needs assessment in accordance with paragraph 4(a) of Schedule 1,

in determining whether it is satisfied as mentioned in section 129(2A) of the 2006 Act (regulations as to pharmaceutical services), [F1 NHS England] must have regard to the matters set out in paragraph (2).]

(2) Those matters are—

(a) whether it is satisfied that it would be desirable to consider, at the same time as the applicant's application, applications from other persons offering to secure the improvements or better access mentioned in paragraph (1) that the applicant is offering to secure;

(b) whether it is satisfied that another application offering to secure the improvements or better access mentioned in paragraph (1) has been submitted to it, and it would be desirable to consider, at the same time as the applicant's application, that other application;

(c) whether it is satisfied that an appeal relating to another application offering to secure the improvements or better access mentioned in paragraph (1) is pending, and it would be desirable to await the outcome of that appeal before considering the applicant's application;

(d) whether it is satisfied that, since the publication of the relevant pharmaceutical needs assessment, there have been changes to the profile of pharmaceutical services in the area of the relevant HWB that are such that refusing the application is essential in order to prevent significant detriment to the provision of pharmaceutical services in that area;

(e) whether it is satisfied that—

(i) granting the application would only secure the improvements or better access mentioned in paragraph (1) in part, and

(ii) if the application were granted, it would be unlikely, in the reasonably foreseeable future, that the remainder of those improvements or that better access would be secured;

(f) whether it is satisfied that, since the publication of the relevant pharmaceutical needs assessment, the improvements or better access mentioned in paragraph (1) have or has been secured by another person who is providing, or is due to be secured by another person who has undertaken to provide, either in the area of the relevant HWB or in the area of another HWB, NHS services;

(g) whether it is satisfied that—

(i) the improvements or better access mentioned in paragraph (1) were or was in respect of services other than essential services, and

(ii) granting the application would result in an undesirable increase in the availability of essential services in the area of the relevant HWB;

(h) whether the application needs to be deferred or refused by virtue of any provision of Part 5 to 7.

(3) For the purposes of paragraph (2)(f), the improvements are or better access is to be treated as due to be secured by another person who has undertaken to provide services if—

(a) the person (P) undertaking to secure the improvements or better access is entitled to give [F1 NHS England] a notice of commencement, as a consequence of which P will be able to commence the provision of services to secure the improvements or better access, but P has not yet given that notice;

(b) P has entered into an LPS scheme with [F1 NHS England], as a consequence of which P will be able to commence the provision of services to secure the improvements or better access, but P has not yet commenced the provision of those services.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in Regulations substituted (6.11.2023) by The Health and Care Act 2022 (Further Consequential Amendments) (No. 2) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/1071), reg. 1(1), Sch. para. 1

F2 Reg. 17(1) substituted (1.4.2014) by The National Health Service (Pharmaceutical and Local Pharmaceutical Services) (Amendment and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2014 (S.I. 2014/417), regs. 1, 5