Our new factsheet helps monitor your pharmacy’s SSP totals
Community Pharmacy England has set out seven steps to help reconcile claims for Serious Shortage Protocols (SSPs).
Our new guidance aims to support pharmacy teams in spot checking that the number of fees paid for supplying items in accordance with an SSP matches the number declared as part of their end of month submission.
We previously reported that the NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) received a number of EPS SSP claims which did not meet the requirements for a valid SSP claim. A large number SSP claims continue to be deemed invalid by the NHSBSA due to incorrect endorsements applied by PMR systems and/or pharmacy staff.
We therefore recommend pharmacy owners review our new briefing factsheet, consider endorsement guidance and regularly reconcile the value of SSP fees on their payment schedules against the number of SSPs declared on the FP34C submission form. The factsheet also outlines that:
- If there is a payment discrepancy and it is believed that the correct SSP endorsing guidance was followed, pharmacy owners may consider requesting a re-check of relevant prescriptions and the NHSBSA will be able to explain why the claim was unpaid or rectify the payments.
- Pharmacy teams are reminded to follow the SSP-specific guidance to ensure endorsements are applied correctly, and we also have guidance supporting teams raising PMR-specific claiming issues with their suppliers.
- Further top tips for claiming.
