Request

Thank you for your request for information about the following:

‘By HU postcode district in which the pharmacy is situated - the monthly amount of methadone dispensed.

Second - the monthly charges received from patients for the drug. I don't think there is a blanket exemption from NHS charges is there?

In case I haven't explained it well - it is for the Hull area HU1 HU2 etc. to HU21

Pharmacy address being in the postcode.

Latest year - please say what 12 months have been provided.

Methadone (ml) dispensed in each area by month.

Prescription charges paid in respect of the scripts received.’

Your request was received on 8 September 2023 and I am dealing with it under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOI Act).

On 6 November 2023 you clarified your information requirements as follows:

Very sorry that I asked without being clear. You are correct HU21 does not exist - my mistake. If possible then please, can you provide by individual districts HU1 to HU20 Liquid scripts only, I couldn't find anything about other forms on NHS website. Value of charges can be ignored. I realise that it wouldn't be helpful for my study.

Response

I can confirm that that the NHSBSA does in fact hold the requested information. Please see below which explains the information which is attached, what information is withheld and why.

Dispensing in HU20

Please note that there are no pharmacies in this post code and therefore there has been no dispensing in that area.

Post codes with fewer than 5 Pharmacies

The information you requested is being withheld as it falls under the exemptions set out in the following sections of the FOIA.

Section 31 – Law Enforcement Section 38(1) – Health and Safety

The below links sets out these exemptions in full.

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2000/36/section/31

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2000/36/section/38

As disclosure of information under FOIA is to the public/world at large, the NHSBSA considers this to include individuals who would use this information for a variety of reasons. Some individuals could be motivated to use the disclosure of this information which reveals which pharmacies dispense controlled drugs prescriptions to target pharmacy staff and wholesaler delivery drivers and attack them to obtain supplies of controlled drugs. This may also affect the safety of patients and customers of those pharmacies.

A list of all active pharmacies is available at the following web link: https://opendata.nhsbsa.net/dataset/contractor-details which would allow the public to locate post codes which have small numbers of pharmacies, including ones which have only one pharmacy. Disclosure of information which helps to identify pharmacies from this information, which dispense controlled drugs would be likely to prejudice the prevention of crime. This is due to the likelihood of the information being used to identify which pharmacies should be targeted, either during or outside business hours.

In applying this exemption, we have balanced the public interest in withholding the information against the public interest in disclosing the information.

See the below factors considered when deciding that in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

Factors in Favour of Disclosure

• Public accountability

Factors in Favour of Withholding

• Disclosure would mean staff will be at a higher risk of physical attack from persons seeking to obtain controlled drugs by force or intimidation. • Patient safety may also be put at risk by the above. • Theft of drugs would cause disruption to the pharmacy, and impact on provision of important medication. • Theft of drugs could impact on patient health if the drugs aren’t readily available at the point of collection.

Reasons why public interest favours withholding information

I consider that the public accountability in releasing this information exactly as requested is outweighed by the potential detrimental effect on the safety of pharmacy staff and their patients.

We have therefore grouped the data for areas where there are fewer than 5 pharmacies. The totals are the same, which hopefully makes the data useful. The post codes have been grouped roughly by geographical location, rather than simply in numerical order.

If you have any queries regarding the data provided, or if you plan on publishing the data please contact foirequests@nhsbsa.nhs.uk ensuring you quote the above reference. This is important to ensure that the figures are not misunderstood or misrepresented.

If you plan on producing a press or broadcast story based upon the data, please contact communicationsteam@nhsbsa.nhs.uk. This is important to ensure that the figures are not misunderstood or misrepresented.

The information supplied to you continues to be protected by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 and is subject to NHSBSA copyright. This information is licenced under the terms of the Open Government Licence detailed at: http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

Should you wish to re-use the information you must include the following statement: “NHSBSA Copyright 2023” This information is licenced under the terms of the Open Government Licence:

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

Failure to do so is a breach of the terms of the licence.

Information you receive which is not subject to NHSBSA Copyright continues to be protected by the copyright of the person, or organisation, from which the information originated. Please obtain their permission before reproducing any third party (non NHSBSA Copyright) information.