Drug Tariff RFI

The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) invites you to participate in an RFI for a Drug Tariff Solution. The solution is required to create the Drug Tariff which the NHSBSA produces on behalf of the Department of Health and Social Care. The NHSBSA are looking to introduce a flexible solution, underpinning business activities, to enable more agility to react to an ever-changing landscape and future proof the creation and accessing of the Drug Tariff by end users (e.g. pharmacists).

The NHSBSA Medicines Data Team and specifically the Drug Tariff Team within, are responsible for the processing and assessing of Part IX applications for the listing or request to change a listing of medical devices as well as the creation of the Drug Tariff on a monthly basis on behalf of the Department of Health and Social Care.

The Drug Tariff outlines:

- what will be paid to pharmacy contractors for NHS services provided either for reimbursement or for remuneration

- rules to follow when dispensing

- value of the fees and allowances to be paid

- drug and appliance prices you will be paid

The Drug Tariff is published on the NHSBSA website and can be viewed at Drug Tariff | NHSBSA.

The Drug Tariff is supplied by the NHSBSA in an electronic format primarily to pharmacists and GP practices.

The requirement is for a solution which produces the Drug Tariff from importing several data sources (from the NHSBSA CDR (Common Drug Reference) database in xml format, Microsoft Word and PDF documents (for NHS Directions) as well as Excel documents for new content).

The Drug Tariff will reflect all the information from the previous edition as well as all drug and appliance changes, price changes, additions and deletions applicable in the current month edition.

Further details on the Functional and Non-functional requirements and formats (The Drug Tariff Document and the Electronic Drug Tariff) are detailed in Appendix 1.

The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) is publishing this Preliminary Market Engagement Notice under Section 17 of the Procurement Act 2023, which sets out the requirement to publish a notice where preliminary market engagement has taken place or is planned.

This engagement is being carried out in line with Section 16 of the Procurement Act 2023, which permits contracting authorities to engage with the market for purposes such as understanding supplier capability, shaping the requirement, and supporting the design of the procurement approach.

In conducting this engagement, we will meet our overarching duties under the Act. This includes acting in a way that supports the procurement objectives, ensuring non‑discrimination between suppliers, and managing any actual or potential conflicts of interest. These duties apply to all preliminary market engagement activities and underpin how information is shared with suppliers to avoid any unfair advantage.

Interested parties must access the RFI documents via https://health-family.force.com/s/Welcome (search opportunities using system reference C428345).