One of Australia’s top doctors has exposed a major problem with the government’s new prescription medicine policy.
Health Minister Mark Butler announced on Wednesday that patients would be able to buy double their supply of some prescription medicines from next January, helping them save money in the long run.
The rule change will see 325 drugs dispensed in 60-day doses instead of the current 30 days.
Consumer groups hailed the move that’s been slammed by controversial Australian Pharmacy Guild president Trent Twomey.
Former deputy chief health officer Dr Nick Coatsworth told Daily Mail Australia that the changes would undoubtedly lead to savings for Aussies, but warned there could be consequences.
Dr Nick Coatsworth, Australia’s former deputy chief medical officer, says the changes would undoubtedly lead to savings for Aussies but suggested local pharmacies could suffer
Health Minister Mark Butler announced on Wednesday that patients will be able to buy double their supply of some prescription medicines from next January, helping them save money in the long-run
‘The main benefit of these changes would be that patients with longer term drug prescriptions would reduce the number of visits to their pharmacy, and make subsequent savings as well in dispensing fees.
‘However, we’re concerned about the implementation of this policy, and the detail is important.’
He explained that the change doesn’t address three main concerns for Australians when it comes to health care.
‘Does this in any way improve access to primary care? And the answer is no. It doesn’t increase the number of consultations, in fact, it decreases them.
‘People with chronic conditions are effectively seen less often with this policy because you can get 12 months supply instead of six months supply of medication.
‘The second issue is the affordability side of things. With the change you can save $160 a year. This helps but, actually, it’s not going to make much of change when grocery bills are going up 50 bucks a week.
‘The improved affordability is welcomed, but it’s very small. I hope the minister’s got more in the budget to improve health care affordability for people on long term medications.’
The policy change was slammed by Trent Twomey, who said it would force him to cut staff, reduce hours and slash services due to losing $170,000 each year under the change.
Dr Coatsworth said dissatisfaction from pharmacies was inevitable – but also warned that fears for smaller pharmacies were justified.
‘From a patient point of view, if the community pharmacy that you’ve been seeing for 20 years suddenly has to close, then this could be a bad thing.
‘I just think we’ve got to be really cautious because we want pharmacies to be open between 8am and 8pm. We don’t want them to have to close or only open between 10am and 5pm because suddenly they can’t afford it.
Health Minister Mark Butler (pictured) announced on Wednesday that patients will be able to buy double their supply of some prescription medicines from next January
‘We don’t want them to have less pharmacists available. I do think from a patient perspective we need a strong community pharmacy network. We’ve just got to be very cautious about the impact that this might have.
‘The savings in costs to consumers is a fantastic outcome, but if that is only partly absorbed by government and passed on to pharmacies to deal with, the potential here is that smaller pharmacies will be under pressure. ‘
Despite his caution, Dr Coatsworth also suggested that less processing times for prescriptions could ensure more face-to-face time between Aussies and pharmacists.
David Clarke, Acting Director of the Australian Patients Association, also suggested caution.
He said “We’re focused on what’s good for patients. In this case, there are definite patient benefits in this initiative if it is well implemented, but we would especially like to hear from government on how it intends to deal with the supply chain challenges, the viability impacts on smaller community pharmacies, and any community education investment it intends to make to underpin safety issues associated with extra drugs in households.’
The announcement of script changes triggered a mix of emotions.
Speaking at Parliament House in Canberra on Thursday, Pharmacy Guild boss Mr Twomey told government MPs to ‘get off your a***’.
The government will save $1.2billion over four years in dispensing fees, with minister Mr Butler promising all that money would be directly reinvested in community pharmacies to help them offer more services.
‘I don’t pretend this is going to be easy for community pharmacy,’ Mr Butler said on Wednesday.
‘I value the work that they do enormously and that is why we have phased this in over this year and next year.’
But Mr Twomey said pharmacists will still lose out from out-of-pocket patient fees, which the Pharmacy Guild estimates at $2.3billion over four years compared with the government’s figure of $1.6billion.
‘They’re not refunding that,’ he said. ‘The pharmacist is wearing the complete rest of the cut.
‘And that’s what’s going to send these guys to the wall. And (Mr Butler) just doesn’t seem to give a s***.’
Mr Twomey then apologised for his language, saying: ‘I’m a North Queenslander. I don’t mean to swear, but they just don’t care.
‘You know, this is supposed to be a government that cares. This is not how one operates.’
The 60-day script policy was recommended by the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee and endorsed by doctor’s groups and the Consumer Health Forum (CHF), which said it will save patients up to $180 per year on each medicine.
‘This is a really good move which shows the government is listening to the voices of consumers,’ CHF’s chief executive Elizabeth Deveny said.
‘Every dollar saved at the pharmacy is money that can be spent on groceries or rent.’
Mr Twomey also warned of medicine shortages and said Mr Butler made ‘false claims’ when he said only seven medicines currently had supply problems.
The Minister said he wanted to ‘caution against some of the scare campaigns being put by the pharmacy lobby group’ as he rejected claims of widespread supply issues.
He said only seven drugs out of a list of 325 were in short supply and they were being closely monitored by the Therapeutic Goods Administration.
‘We have deliberately decided to phase in these arrangements over the course of this year and next year, so pharmacists are able to change their itinerary arrangements,’ Mr Butler said.
Australia’s Pharmacy Guild president Trent Twomey (pictured) choked back tears while issuing a foul-mouthed spray against the government over its new drug script policy
Australians will soon be able to buy 60 days worth of prescription medication at once, for the same price as a 30-day supply
The Opposition has backed the Pharmacy Guild, saying it wants to see more information about the changes.
But Mr Butler said the Coalition should support this ‘important cost-of-living measure that’s good for hip pockets and good for Australians’ health’.
‘Perhaps no-one will be surprised that (Opposition leader Peter) Dutton, given the choice between backing patients or backing profit, has yet again decided to leave patients out in the cold,’ he said.
In January, 2022, Mr Twomey said then would be a good time to get Covid-19 and admitted he no longer made his children wear facemasks.
He said then would be the most ‘convenient’ time to contract the virus in order to fit his family’s schedule.
‘There is no good time to get Covid, but if my family have to catch it, now would be a good time,’ he said.
Chris Moy, the then-vice president of the Australian Medical Association, slammed Mr Twomey’s remarks for setting a bad example.
‘I don’t believe this is responsible, both from the point of view of the overall public health perspective, but also from a point of view of setting an example,’ Dr Moy said.
‘Suits us is not the same thing as suiting the entire community effort.’
