The changes to NMS and the financial opportunities they deliver for community pharmacies

(This article featured in Pharmacy Business Magazine – June issue)

Introduction:

English pharmacies have been delivering NMS (New Medicine Services) since October 2011. These services have successfully increased the effective use of medicines across communities while improving profit margins in the pharmacy business.

Patients become more empowered and informed about their medications, and pharmacies strengthen patient relationships and receive payments under the scheme - a win-win scenario. Using pharmacy data analytics, it’s clear that NMS plays a vital role in supporting both patient care and pharmacy profitability.

The conditions currently covered by the NHS include:

• Asthma and COPD
• Diabetes (Type 2)
• Hypertension
• Hypercholesterolaemia
• Osteoporosis
• Gout
• Glaucoma
• Epilepsy
• Parkinson’s disease
• Urinary incontinence/retention
• Heart failure
• Acute coronary syndromes
• Atrial fibrillation
• Long-term risks of venous thromboembolism/embolism

What’s new?

From October 2025, depression will be added to the list of NMS conditions. According to research by YuLife, every 0.3 seconds, someone in England is prescribed an antidepressant. In 2024 alone, over 91 million prescriptions were dispensed - an all-time high. This presents a significant opportunity for retail pharmacy analytics and pharmacy business intelligence tools to support better service delivery and track outcomes. Furthemore, the increase in antidepressant usage means community pharmacies will have more opportunities to engage patients and grow their pharmacy revenue through the NMS claiming structure.

The inclusion of depression isn’t the only change coming into play, though. The NHS has also changed the way payments are made. Before we go into payments in detail, though, let’s remind ourselves of the different stages that make up an NMS:

Claim structure up until April 2025:

Previously, pharmacies were paid a total of £28 per completed NMS episode: a dispensing fee and a service fee post-consultation. Using RWA Pharmacy data, the average UK pharmacy completed 45 NMS episodes in Q1 2025, claiming around £3,800. However, with a target of 90 NMS, the data shows a huge opportunity to increase pharmacy revenue.

Claim Structure after April 2025:

The April changes introduced a split-fee model:

• £14 for a completed intervention consultation
• £14 for a completed follow-up consultation

Pharmacies can now claim partially even if they don’t complete all stages, critical for those struggling with staffing or patient engagement. This change is supported by pharmacy workflow automation trends and data from the Community Pharmacy England’s ‘Pharmacy Pressures Survey 2024’, which reported that 71% of pharmacy businesses faced staff shortages. By rewarding partial service completion, pharmacies can improve their pharmacy profit margins and maintain service delivery standards.

Forecasting: What could this mean for your pharmacy?

RWA Pharmacy used pharmacy analytics software and recent NMS data to model potential revenue shifts.

Without depression medicines:

Assuming 45 interventions per month with a 60% follow-up completion rate.

With the positive swing to NMS claims showing a full completion rate in April 25 to 80%, the follow-up average should move to 36.

This will add further revenue to pharmacies than shown above. 

With depression medicines included (from October 2025):

A projected additional 40+ patients per month could lead to 70+ interventions, with an 80% completion rate:

That’s a 75% increase in potential monthly NMS revenue! An essential figure for anyone exploring how to grow a pharmacy business using pharmacy BI.

What should pharmacies do next?

• Train Your Staff: Ensure your team is confident in handling NMS for both physical and mental health conditions.

• Refine Your Processes: Use pharmacy inventory management software and pharmacy workflow automation to streamline tasks and free up time for patient interactions.

• Track Your Performance: Implement pharmacy data management and pharmacy benchmarking tools to identify trends, gaps, and growth opportunities.

• Build Relationships: With EPS nomination losses rising, use NMS to deepen relationships and retain patients.

How does RWA Pharmacy’s solutions help manage NMS?

Our NMS module is designed to enhance your retail pharmacy management and give you full visibility over your NMS delivery.

Our module provides you with both a summary report, and a more detailed look at your pharmacy’s performance with this service. 

This enables real-time tracking of performance and enables you to maximise your claimable revenue by reducing missed opportunities. It takes the manual load off your team, so they can utilise their time doing follow-ups instead of admin.

What can you expect to see?

1. Performance Tracking

• Monthly and Year-To-Date Claims
• Branch Level Breakdown
• Missed Opportunities & Financial Impact Reports

2. Operational Insights

• Patient-level data - who is at what stage
• Pending Interventions - a list showing who is overdue or coming up
• Weekly Summaries – track weekly engagement, missed, decline and expired NMS cases.
• Payment Reconciliation – compares completed vs paid claims to identify discrepancies.

3. Picking Up Missed Opportunities

• Potential NMS Patients - a list of who is eligible & not engaged yet

If you're exploring how to increase pharmacy profitability or want to harness data analytics in pharmacy, our solutions provide the insights and support you need.

Interested in learning more?

Whether you're looking for pharmacy analytics software, support with pharmacy data, or want to know how to increase profit in your pharmacy, RWA Pharmacy is here to help.

Get in touch to discover how our pharmacy business intelligence solutions can transform your NMS delivery and elevate your bottom line.