The Pharmacy Guild is calling on the Albanese Government to sit down, properly consult and commit to an early start date for an eighth Community Pharmacy Agreement (8CPA) over the next three weeks, before the Senate returns on 4 September to consider further disallowance motions.
Community pharmacists want cheaper medicine for all patients, while also preventing further negative impacts on patients, aged care residents and pharmacies, as a result of unintended consequences from 60-days dispensing.
Major health groups representing patients, including the Australian Patients Association, Pain Australia and Better Access Australia, called for the policy be delayed.
Pharmacy Guild President Professor Trent Twomey said more time is needed to ensure unintended consequences didn't negatively impact patients and pharmacies.
"All pharmacists want cheaper medicine for their patients and we are ready, willing and able to sit down with the Government and make sensible adjustments to the policy so patients, aged care residents and pharmacists aren't negatively impacted," he said.
"We want the Government to hear our concerns, properly consult with us, and commit to an early start date for an eighth Community Pharmacy Agreement, before the Senate considers further potential motions when they return on September 4.
"Instead of the Labor Party disallowing their own policy today in the Senate, we should be sitting down and getting this policy right for millions of patients and thousands of community pharmacies.
"With more time we can implement a policy that doesn't force hundreds of pharmacies to close, puts thousands of pharmacy workers out of a job, and increases the cost of services for every aged care resident in the country.
Pain Australia Chief Executive Giulia Jones said the policy should be delayed until the viability of pharmacies in rural and regional areas is guaranteed. "We believe there needs to be time to ensure no rural and regional pharmacies will close, when people with chronic pain already struggle to get access to the pain medications they need in rural and regional Australia."
Better Access Australia Chairwoman Felicity McNeill PSM said cheaper medicine is worth nothing if there is no one in your local area to dispense it. "Better Access Australia are seeing huge pressures on pharmacies to deliver the Opiate Dependence Treatment Program because the Government didn't do its homework before rushing out the announceable." "The Parliament needs to give everyone in the community the time to make sure this reform works for everyone: patients, pharmacies, suppliers, wholesalers, government."
Pharmaceutical Society of Australia Lead for the Community Pharmacy Agreement Dr Shane Jackson said, "alignment of the implementation of the 8th Community Pharmacy Agreement is paramount to give patients, the profession and the healthcare sector certainty."
"Currently, community pharmacy is struggling to come to terms with the impacts of these changes and it makes sense to pause, consult and implement a policy that leaves community pharmacy in a better position to address the current challenges affecting patients accessing healthcare," Dr Jackson said.
The Guild called on the Health Minister Mark Butler to honour his pre-election commitment;
"Labor also looks forward to working with the Guild to ensure the implementation of the current community pharmacy agreement includes reforms that do not negatively impact on either the viability of community pharmacies or patient's access to community services." (Mark Butler letter 12.05.22)
An independent economic report on the Federal Government's 60 day dispensing policy found the policy, in its current form, would have negative consequences for the delivery of frontline healthcare across the country, with people living in regional and remote Australia and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients to be hit the hardest.
The report conducted by economist Henry Ergas AO, with Tulipwood Economics and Griffith University's Relational Insights Data Lab found:
- 665 community pharmacies will be forced to close, and a further 900 will be at risk of closing, over the next four years.
- 20,818 workers in community pharmacies will lose their jobs over the next four years.
- Community pharmacies will be forced to cut opening hours by 2.5 hours each day, on average.
- 3,597 jobs will be lost in rural and remote community pharmacies over the next four years.
- $4.5 billion will be cut from community pharmacies, and none of the money taken out will be reinvested.
- Free services like blood pressure monitoring, weight checking, home delivery of medicines and asthma monitoring will be cut.
A nationwide survey of 1,000 community pharmacies, conducted by the Pharmacy Guild in the past week, shows almost one in four (23%) have reduced opening hours and more than half (54%) have increased fees for services. 250 pharmacy workers have also been made redundant.
All pharmacists want cheaper medicine for their patients and we are ready, willing and able to sit down with the Government and make sensible adjustments to the policy so patients, aged care residents and pharmacists aren't negatively impacted
Professor Trent Twomey - National President, Pharmacy Guild of Australia
