Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Definitions
The endorsements needed to enable us to pay you correctly
When to send your prescriptions in to us
Under the new pharmacy contract pharmacists may be eligible to claim the following
payments:
Basic Price (Part II, Clause 8, 10, 11, 13 & Part VII)
Discount Scale (3.17 - 11.18%) (SFE, Annex G, Part 1)
VAT Allowance (SFE, Paragraph 17.3 (c))
Dispensing Fees (SFE, Annex G, Part 2)
Out of pocket expenses (Part II, Clause 12)
The following document has been produced to act as guidance for dispensing practices on
what endorsements are required for reimbursement:
Dispensing Endorsement Guidance for Dispensing Practices
Drug Tariff (Appliance Contractors)
A Community Practitioner Nurse Prescriber can only prescribe from the list published in Part
XVIIB(i) and Part IX of the Drug Tariff. A Nurse independent prescriber is not limited to a
specific list however Part XVIIB(ii) sets out the framework for Nurse Independent Prescribing.
They can prescribe any licensed medicine, appliance or borderline substance subject to the
same restrictions as a doctor within their own level of professional competence and expertise.
The only exception is for controlled drugs, where there is a limited list of drugs published in
Part XVIIB(ii) which can only be prescribed for the medical conditions indicated.
Supplementary prescribing is a voluntary prescribing partnership between an independent
prescriber and a supplementary prescriber, to implement an agreed patient -specific clinical
management plan with the patients' agreement. Provided medicines are prescribable by the
independent prescriber at the NHS expense and that they are referred to in the patient's
clinical management plan, they may be prescribed by a supplementary prescriber.
Part XVIIIA reproduces Schedule 1 to the NHS (General Medical Services Contracts)
(Prescription of Drugs etc.) Regulations 2004. In 1985 the Government issued a list of
preparations which would no longer be prescribable on NHS prescriptions. To compile the list,
the Government looked at several therapeutic groups and then assessed the products in
these groups to see if there seemed to be duplication or products that were too expensive,
not necessary, or which had no medicinal use. The up to date version of the list can be found
towards the back of the Drug Tariff in Part XVIIIA. It is vitally important to check items in the
current month's tariff. If a pharmacist dispenses an item in Part XVIIIA they will not receive a
payment and they will be in breach of their 'Terms of Service', likewise a doctor cannot
prescribe an item that appears in Part XVIIIA of the Drug Tariff and will also be in breach of
their 'Terms of Service'. Contractors may, however, be able to dispense a Schedule 1item if
the doctor has ordered it by an "approved name" i.e. a generic item with a monograph in a
recognised formulary (BP, BAN etc) so long as the "approved name" is not included in Part
XVIIIA. If the "approved name" is also listed in Part VIII then, of course, the reimbursement
will be based on the Part VIII entry.
Selected List Scheme, Part XVIIIB reproduces Schedule 2 to the NHS (General Medical
Services Contracts) (Prescription of Drugs etc.) Regulations 2004. This is a list of items that
have been agreed by the Department of Health as being part of the Selected List Scheme
(more usually described as "SLS"). These items must meet the criteria listed in Part XVIIIB
before they can be prescribed under the NHS. By marking the prescription 'SLS' the doctor is
indicating that he is prescribing for a person listed in column 2 to treat the condition listed in
column 3.
These drugs are not allowed for any other patient or purpose. (You need to be aware that
SLS also applies to vacuum pumps and constrictor rings see Part IXA)
Are there any other sections of the Drug Tariff that are important to me?
Yes! Part XVI sets out how the prescription charge system works and gives many examples of
how many prescription charges are applicable to different types of items and even how many
charges are applicable to different combinations of items. Of course, it would be very difficult
to make this a fully comprehensive list therefore Part XVI has been split into different subheadings, each of which should, hopefully, cover most eventualities. Remember that you
could lose out financially if you ask the patient for the wrong amount of money relating to
his/her prescription charges. And then there's Part II, Clause 10 - this is the Clause that tells
you what quantities you should supply, especially in relation to calendar packs (Clause 10C)
and special containers (Clause 10B)
Calendar Packs - There are two reimbursement options - either supply to the nearest
calendar/sub-pack or supply the exact quantity ordered. If the latter, clearly endorse
that this is what you've supplied.
Special Containers - These are packs that it would not be practical to split therefore
you need to supply the nearest number of complete packs to the quantity ordered.
By using your Drug Tariff regularly you will begin to find that it's not quite so unfriendly as it
might first appear. By not using the Drug Tariff there is a possibility that you could lose out on
some payment you're entitled to. To coin a phrase "Use it, don't lose it!"
NCSO
Drug Tariff Part II Clause 9 C refers to where there are no Part VIII preparations available to
contractors at the appropriate price. Please follow the link to the NHSBSA website page on
NCSO endorsements for further background and up to date information regarding NCSO.
Useful Links
Department of Health
Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC)