Following intensive discussions with the Department of Health and the Minister for Health, a new revised agreement on the Free Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) Arrangement has been proposed and endorsed by the IPU Committees.

Significantly, we have now formally entered into substantive talks through an agreed  Framework of Engagement with the Department of Health and the HSE that lays the groundwork for long-overdue reform across the community pharmacy sector.

This Framework will guide negotiations on wider contractual, fee and service issues with a clear three-month timeline.

Progress through the Framework is not simply administrative or symbolic, it is meaningful, it is strategic, and it is, I believe, a clear recognition of the value our profession brings to patient-centred healthcare in Ireland every day.

“ Reaching a solution to the budgetary HRT measure is a starting point, not the end goal. The bigger picture and long-term strategy is based around the Framework engagement process.”  

HRT

You will be aware that discussions on the HRT scheme have been ongoing for some time. In the weeks leading up to and following the Minister’s address at our recent National Conference, the pace and depth of negotiations intensified. These efforts have delivered a revised offer from the Minister.

Key elements of the revised HRT arrangement include:

• A €5.00 dispensing fee per HRT product dispensed to all eligible patients;
• A guarantee that medicines dispensed under this arrangement are outside of the regressive fee scale; and
• A doubling of the transitional grant to €2,000 per participating pharmacy.

Many of you will ask, why did we settle for a fee that was less than what we proposed?

Reaching a solution to the budgetary HRT measure is a starting point, not the end goal. The bigger picture and long-term strategy is based around the Framework engagement process.

By entering the Framework negotiations, we secure the first formal process for reform in decades, with an end point that includes a guaranteed investment and positions us for wider, long-term gains across the entire sector.

The Department and Minister have acknowledged, in writing, the essential role of pharmacists in delivering care, particularly in the area of women’s health. That recognition matters and as noted by the Minister, the successful resolution of the HRT arrangements will allow negotiations on the Framework of Engagement to begin on a strong and cooperative footing. It sets a constructive tone for what comes next.

Endorsement and entry into the Framework

In good faith and after careful deliberation and robust discussion, the IPU’s Pharmacy Contractors Committee (PCC) and Executive Committee have endorsed this revised HRT Arrangement.

This decision was not taken lightly. But it reflects our collective judgment that this agreement, viewed in its full context, offers the most pragmatic and promising route forward for our profession.

What stands before us now is the most comprehensive commitment to community pharmacy in years. The new Framework of Engagement, signed by the Minister for Health, is not merely a discussion forum, it is a structured, budget-backed process designed to deliver concrete outcomes across the areas that matter most to you.

These include:

• Reviewing and modernising fee arrangements;
• Reducing unnecessary administrative burden;
• Investing in pharmacy digitalisation and IT infrastructure; and
• Expanding the range of services community pharmacists can offer patients.

These are not abstract goals, they align directly with our Vision for Community Pharmacy in 2030, and they reflect what you, our members, have consistently told us is needed to make the profession more sustainable, more innovative, and more patient-centred.

Crucially, we have a Minister and Department that have shown a willingness to engage constructively, backed by a €50 million recurring annual budget. That is not a token gesture that is a commitment supported in writing.

Moving forward

I understand that some of you may approach this development with healthy scepticism. We have all seen initiatives launched with promise and then fall short in delivery.

Yes, there is still a long way to go. Yes, some of the structural challenges we face will not be solved overnight and yes, the real test of this Framework will be in the outcomes it delivers not in the words on a page.

But we now have something we did not have before: a formalised, Minister-backed process and a significant budget to support it.

A new phase for Irish pharmacy

Formal negotiations under the new Framework began with an initiation meeting on 21 May to set the structure of the process. This agreement is more than a policy update, it is the start of a new phase, one that positions community pharmacy as an integrated and indispensable part of Ireland’s primary care system.

We have earned this seat at the table. As we begin this next stage, I want to thank the members for your continued support, your trust, and above all, your commitment to your patients and your communities.

We have achieved this progress together and together we will ensure it leads to lasting change. Our strength lies in our unity, and the longer we stand united, the stronger we become.