Asda starts offering new free service in 232 stores that could become essential

Supermarket giant Asda, in an unprecedented move within the UK grocery sector, has declared its intention to start providing online prescription services, with people able to come in and collect their medication in many of its stores. The supermarket giant is collaborating with online pharmacy firm, Pharmacy2U, for the initiative.

People can sign up with Asda's new online prescription service pharmacy.asda.com TO can manage their prescriptions and request medicines for home delivery. The supermarket chain has said this will soon mean that customers will be able to collect their prescriptions at any one of Asda's 232 stores with a pharmacy.

This service could quickly become essential for many communities, as the number of pharmacies serving patients has declined sharply in recent years. According to analysis by the Guardian, since 2017 almost 1000 pharmacies have closed in England, a decline of 7.7 per cent that reflects tens of thousands of people no longer served by a community pharmacy.

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The Mirror reports that this move comes in the wake of Lloyds Pharmacy's decision to terminate all 237 of its pharmacy services within Sainsbury's stores in 2023. Citing "changing market conditions" as the reason, Lloyds Pharmacy conducted a strategic review which led to this significant reduction.

Faisal Tuddy, Head of Asda Pharmacy and Superintendent Pharmacist, said: "By launching this platform, we are now able to reach even more Asda customers across the country, some of whom may not have an Asda Pharmacy nearby. We know how important it is for families to be able to simply access their repeat prescriptions without having to worry.

"This