Every effort must be made to restore pharmacy services to Bishops Lydeard, near Taunton, as soon as possible, Somerset MP Ian Liddell-Grainger has insisted.
The village pharmacy is to close in a fortnight leaving between four and five thousand people - many in Mr Liddell-Grainger’s Bridgwater and West Somerset constituency - with no local dispensing service.
The situation has become further complicated because the next nearest pharmacy, in Norton Fitzwarren, is also shutting its doors.
Mr Liddell-Grainger said the situation was completely unacceptable.
“At a time when the Government is clearing the way for pharmacies to widen their role by prescribing medication for a whole range of minor conditions in order to take some of the pressure off GP surgeries it is infuriating to hear of closures such as this,” he said.
“It is entirely unacceptable that patients will now be required to travel to Taunton or Bridgwater to pick up medication. Online pharmacy services, such as Pharmacy2U, do exist and work well but many people, particularly the elderly, do not have the internet access necessary to use them.
“Local pharmacy services appear to be in total disarray at the moment and I shall be raising this situation with ministers as soon as I can.”
Photo: Google Street View
