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GPhC warns cost of fitness to practice cases could reach £6.6m

It will cost the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) between £3.2 million and £6.6m to clear the disciplinary cases it has this week inherited from the RPSGB, the new regulator has estimated.

A GPhC survey of RPSGB fitness to practice activity found costs for a hearing day by either the RPSGB’s Disciplinary Committee or Health Committee were £12,000 when it was attended by RPSGB internal advocates. Using external legal experts brought costs up to £24,000.

The survey also found approximately 15 months were required for serious complaints to pass through the investigations and preparation stages before being heard by the Investigating Committee.

And for complaints to pass all the way through to the Disciplinary Committee took almost four years in most cases.