In October, pharmacies were given six weeks to find a new MDS supplier, after Biodose’s parent company Protomed announced it would close the business on November 30, due to a lack of “meaningful profit”.

However, medication management company Dosecare has acquired the intellectual property rights to continue to manufacture Biodose products – including trays and heat sealers – under the name Biodose, and bought Protomed’s current stock, the company announced on November 30.

Dosecare said that following the acquisition, it has assured “undisrupted service to all pharmacies and care home suppliers, with no planned price increases”.

“Some pharmacies have switched”

Healthcare company Issa Group, which owns Dosecare, also confirmed that pharmacies will not need to switch MDS suppliers – as Protomed had suggested at the time it announced its closure.

But Mehfuz Dasu Patel, service development manager at Issa Group, told C+D he was aware that some pharmacies had already spent money doing so before the acquisition was announced.

“Sadly, the deal was done after [Protomed] had decided to liquidate, so some pharmacies started switching over.

“We understand the last couple of months have been unsettling, but I hope we can now reassure customers who trust the Biodose product that it’s never been in better hands and will be a high-quality product in the market for many years to come.”

“Changing medicines management”

Mr Patel said the manufacturer planned to “invest continually in new innovations” and “change the traditional model of medication management”.  

“The acquisition of Biodose gives us control over the supply chain, bringing years of experience to our customers and economies of scale which will directly benefit their business,” he added.