Latest updates on COVID-19 (coronavirus)

The GPhC has outlined its position on pharmacy professionals being vaccinated against COVID-19 in a new statement.

Duncan Rudkin, Chief Executive of the General Pharmaceutical Council, has responded to the Government announcement that it will consult on removing vaccination as a condition of deployment for health and social care staff.

Pharmacists and pharmacy technicians due to submit their revalidation records on or before 31 May 2022, will only need to submit a reflective account when they renew their registration.

The regulators of UK health and social care professionals have reiterated their support for staff working together to tackle the ongoing pandemic and seasonal pressure on services.

See the statement from Duncan Rudkin, Chief Executive of the General Pharmaceutical Council urging the public to treat pharmacy staff with respect at all times

From 19 July 2021, measures put in place to limit the spread of COVID-19, including social distancing and wearing face masks in certain settings, will no longer be mandatory in England. Instead the Government in England has set out an expectation and recommendation that people should wear face coverings in crowded areas, as the number of cases is high and rising. 

We have issued a joint letter with the UK Chief Pharmaceutical Officers and the PSNI thanking pharmacy colleagues for their ongoing work throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

When the pandemic began last year, we as professional regulators across the UK, set out how we would carry out our roles during this time. We would like to set out our approach again in the following joint statement, which re-iterates the principles we said we would rely upon, and will continue to rely upon as the pandemic continues.

We have signed a joint letter with the UK Chief Pharmaceutical Officers and the PSNI, which thanks everyone working in pharmacy for their remarkable work to reduce the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the lives of our fellow citizens and their tireless efforts to support patients. 

We have updated our Q&A about supplying different types of COVID-19 tests from pharmacies in Great Britain.

In March, we announced that pharmacy professionals who were due to renew their registration between 20 March and 31 August 2020 would not have to submit revalidation records, because of the challenges and pressures on pharmacy professionals as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

We have responded to a letter from the PDA which sets out concerns that community pharmacy employers may be failing to report instances of exposure to Covid-19 in the workplace to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

Our Chief Executive and Registrar Duncan Rudkin has written to pharmacy owners and superintendent pharmacists via email to highlight our position concerning the provision and sale of COVID-19 rapid antibody tests from community pharmacies.

Our Chief Executive and the Chief Executive Officer of the Competition and Markets Authority have written a joint letter to pharmacy owners and superintendent pharmacists in Great Britain.

Duncan Rudkin, Chief Executive of the GPhC, said: “We are carefully considering the findings of Public Health England’s report on disparities in the risk and outcomes of COVID-19 and the recommendations set out in the second part of that report on understanding the impact of COVID-19 on BAME groups.

Duncan Rudkin, Chief Executive of the GPhC, said: "New services to trace people who have been in close contact with people who have tested positive for coronavirus, and to ask them to self-isolate, are being introduced across Great Britain.