Commissioning pharmacies to deliver more NHS vaccinations could free up 10 million GP appointments annually, says CCA.
From 1 April 2026, integrated care boards (ICBs) will become responsible for commissioning all vaccination services, as part of NHS England’s plan to delegate vaccination and screening (V&S) programmes.
The proposal has been considered by the Vaccination and Screening Delivery and Transformation Board, Commissioning Development Programme Delivery Group, and the NHS Executive, with the delegation now requesting approval from the NHS England Board.
Commenting on the proposal, Malcolm Harrison, chief executive, Company Chemists’ Association (CCA) has emphasised the crucial role community pharmacies can play in improving vaccine uptake, particularly in underserved communities.
Harrison said that the most efficient approach for many NHS vaccinations was to “provide a consistent patient offer through nationally defined programmes” as this “ensures that patients nationwide know what to expect of their local pharmacy and supports uptake rates.”
However, he recognised that ICB-led commissioning can also “provide opportunities to commission bespoke vaccination and screening services, based on local and unmet need.”
“Community pharmacy has a clear role to play in meeting patient need and increasing uptake for both national and local programmes,” he noted.
Harrison also highlighted that the CCA’s Pharmacy Vaccinations Development Group, launched last year, is already working with representatives across the supply chain to explore how pharmacies can administer more NHS vaccines.
The association is calling on NHS England to commission pharmacies to deliver a wide range of NHS vaccinations – including pneumonia, shingles, meningitis, RSV, and other routine childhood vaccinations.
“Taken together, this would free up 10 million GP vaccination appointments each year, allowing GPs to focus on delivering care to patients with more complex care needs,” Harrison added.
The NHS aims to delegate the majority of V&S services to ICBs to support their role in population health and prevention.
In addition to commissioning all vaccination services, most components of screening services have been delegated to ICBs.
However, five components of screening services will remain under NHS England’s direct commissioning:
- Bowel cancer screening hubs
- Bowel cancer screening managed service provision
- Cervical Screening Administration Service (CSAS)
- HPV cytology laboratories
- Newborn bloodspot laboratory services
NHS England also retain its role in standard setting, assurance, coordination, planning, implementing new programmes, managing programme changes, and incident response to ensure national consistency.
