No Deal and supply of medicines

I think they were doing maybe some testing and definitely the passing of if a drug was safe etc. A lot of jobs going.

Jalima, even if the staff were to stay and the same buildings used, it was funded by the EU so presumably the cost would now fall to the UK.

Well yes, but surely we’ll have been paying towards the EU pot that funded it anyway?

In that case, I should have said, would now fall completely on the UK.

If you require medication for significant illnesses, it is essential that you at least inquire about continued supply of the medication.

This is just one of the many worries we are right to have about any kind of brexit, let alone the potentially catastrophic "no-deal brexit".

It is well established that leaving the EU will make us much poorer but this is a matter of life and death

I for one feel a great lack of confidence in the government’s ability to manage an exit deal that will not cause serious problems for us and I have started stockpiling meds I use that are manufactured in Germany. I believe that ports do not have the facilities to keep medicines at the correct temperature if there is a backlog. Unfortunately prescription drugs can only be obtained monthly so difficult to stockpile.

Lazigirl if you stockpile your medication that is good for you!!!

As I have posted before does anyone here really believe that mainland Europe will let people in UK suffer/die!

I have daily medication it keeps me alive I have faith in humanity. I will not get sucked into this doomsday scenario

I think the government believes it, GG. They've suggested stockpiling themselves.

I really don't understand why Europe has to save us from our own idiocy.

its not the EU's problem if we walk away after almost 3 YEARS without making a deal .Its the governments fault ,Mrs May and cohorts ..incompetent and uninterested in the country .All they want is to make sure THEY are OK after Brexit and they will be .Its the rest of us who'll suffer ,as per usual .All in it together ? Biggest lie of the last decade !!

Like Lazigirl I can't see how it's possible for an individual to stockpile. Maybe the pharmacies can though.
There are many meds. you can order online from abroad - when we were in France I used to get Vagifem from New Zealand (until I found an equivalent was available.)
I think things have tightened up now with online pharmacies as some drugs weren't the real thing.
Others now demand a dr.'s prescription - fair enough.

It also seems that fake medicines are getting into the pharmacies supplies. It is a bit risky getting stuff in line.

Hospitals will be in danger of drug shortages in the event of a no-deal Brexit, NHS trusts have warned privately.

Poorly coordinated ministers and health service bosses have failed to properly prepare for the possibility of the UK crashing out of the European Union, according to a leaked letter from NHS Providers, which represents the trusts.

“Public health and disease control coordination could suffer,” said the organisation’s chief executive Chris Hopson, who warned a hard Brexit or no deal could negatively impact upon “the entire supply chain of pharmaceuticals”.

No-deal Brexit ‘a mistake we’d regret for generations’, says Hunt
Brexit could also jeopardise the status of EU workers ”on which the NHS relies”, he added.

Mr Hopson’s letter was sent to NHS England chief executive Simon Stevens and NHS Improvement chief Ian Dalton on Friday, and copied to Brexit secretary Dominic Raab and officials at the Department for Health. It was later leaked to The Times.

The letter comes days after the British Medical Association (BMA) warned leaving the EU without a deal would leave Britain more vulnerable to outbreaks of deadly infectious diseases and increase the risk of a Europe-wide pandemic.

The possibility of a no-deal or hard Brexit “with minimal regulatory alignment appears to be growing”, warned Mr Hopson.

He wrote: “For as long as that risk remains, it is important that detailed operation planning is undertaken across the NHS. Yet trusts tell us that their work in this area is being hampered by the lack of visible and appropriate communication.

“Our members have begun planning... but they have hit a problem, in that some activities are clearly best done at a national level and, in the view of trusts, are best co-ordinated by NHS England and NHS Improvement.

www.independent.co.uk/news/health/no-deal-brexit-nhs-medicine-shortages-drugs-providers-chris-hopson-eu-a8500446.html

I've found the address of the Dept. of health and Social Care and am going to write to them about pharmaceuticals.
Snailmail.
The staff shortages is a separate issue, to do with the govt's stance on immigration.

Former head of the civil service Lord Kerslake said failure to reach a Brexit deal with the EU would be "an utter and complete disaster for this country".

www.youtube.com/watch?v=b980A-zYo6A

I think scaremongering about the need to stockpile medicines is a terrible idea.

Talk about a guaranteed way to ensure there will be shortages. Of course if that were the case Brexit would inevitably be blamed, rather than those very people who created the problem by stockpiling.

If you were about to jump off a cliff and a sensible person warned you that it was a long way down and there were rocks below, would you call that scaremongering?

Everyone should be prepared to listen to people like Lord Kerslake who understand better than most of us how much damage a no-deal brexit could inflict on our country.

I prefer to pay heed to experts, who really understand the complexity of the situation we are in, than believe the pro-brexit, brexit-at-any-cost propaganda of the right wing press.

Guardian 6/9/18 The Government is in talks with drug companies about the extra costs of stockpiling and flying in vital medicines in the event of a no-deal Brexit the health secretary has revealed. Matt Hancock said the discussions were not a remnant of the so-called project fear campaign against Brexit but part of “responsible planning for a no-deal. I rest my case JenniferEccles.

Good post JenniferEccles
People stockpiling medicines they may never need will cause a shortage and the medicines may eventually go out of date and have to be disposed of later on.

Do you have any practical suggestions varian.
What are you going to do about it?

The best thing we could possibly do is to lobby in any way we can either for the government to cancel brexit or for a People's Vote with Remain as an option.

You really think that is the best thing "we" could do?
I for one will not be drawn into your fearmongering hysteria.
I have 8 different medications a day, 3 different inhalers, medical oxygen, oral morphine and supplemented foodstuffs...
I am content to let the professionals that deal with my case and medications respond accordingly to any shortages and the last thing I would do is pester them about "what ifs", same goes for my MP, NHS etc etc.
There comes a point when someone is perpetually seeding discontent and worry that I just switch off, not interested in the hand wringing doom and gloom any more and I find it distasteful that some prey upon peoples fears in such a way for the sake of having the most drama laden posts in a thread.

I don't know if this is relevant or not, but I found an article today in a french newspaper saying that they're facing a shortage of many essential medicaments:
www.ladepeche.fr/article/2018/10/29/2897184-vaccins-anticancereux-antibiotiques-penurie-medicaments-atteint-record-france.html

I think it's universal Fennel and I'm not sure why.
There was a problem over 12 months ago with the medication I am on and the (well-known) pharmacy had to try various wholesalers before they could source it.

I have already mentioned the worrying shortage of Epipens worldwide. The manufacture of medicines is being outsourced to many countries now and there seems to be a resultant chaos, not just in the UK.
The flu vaccine, for example, has been in short supply this autumn.

ps It's in French Fennel, my French is a bit rusty!

You are right Jalima that it is not unknown for there to be a shortage of medicines, epipens for instance, which is universal, and occurs periodically. The reasons it seems are multiple, changes in treatment, fluctuations in demand & manufacture and one of the main ones appears to be short shelf life. Obviously not confined to UK but we can do without any further disruption which I hope Brexit will not bring. My concern is suitable storage & temperature for medicines at points of entry if backlogs occur. Suitable storage does not apparently at present exist. I trust and hope that no government would jeopardise it’s populations health by not having robust contingency plans in place.

I am assured by my MP that they do Lazigirl

ie as far as general worldwide shortages allow them to be. Of course, any shortages will be blamed on Brexit even if they are not due to that.