And the county’s health chief says “there is a problem” with pharmacies not opening out-of-hours or on Sundays. A review of the county’s pharmacies found the number had dropped by seven since 2022. There are currently 88 community pharmacies in Worcestershire plus 21 dispensing GP practices. Chief executive Paul Rees said this is “both increasing the cost of dispensing medicine and pushing many community pharmacies to the brink”. And only 18 per cent of the county’s pharmacies are open on Sunday, while 11 per cent open after 7pm.