Pharmacy election battle
August 20, 2010
THE Pharmacy Guild has ended
up in the centre of a war of words
between the Labor Party and the
Coalition over claims about a $1.15
billion saving in the opposition’s
PBS budget costings.
The Guild said that following the
signing of the Fifth Community
Pharmacy Agreement, which
procured savings attributable to
community pharmacy of over $1
billion, it is “entitled to be extremely
concerned about any prospect of
further cuts to the PBS”.
Guild President Kos Sclavos said
that after the Coalition released its
$1.1 billion estimate “we sought
urgent clarification from the
Coalition and comment from the
Labor Party.”
Shadow health minister Peter
Dutton moved to allay the industry
fears, by saying a Coalition
government was not proposing any
changes to either the existing Fifth
Community Pharmacy Agreement
or the Memorandum of
Understanding with Medicines
Australia (see p2).
“Labor’s desperate, last minute
scare campaign about the PBS is
simply untrue,” Dutton said.
He said that the Fifth Community
Pharmacy Agreement “is
UNTOUCHED by the coalition,”
with the opposition estimates based
on financial modelling changes to
the PBS based on existing policy
settings.
“Labor booked $2.5 billion in
savings over the Forward Estimates
period for the PBS. We have
estimated that the reforms will net
savings of an extra $1.1 billion,”
Dutton wrote, adding that he was
“concerned that Labor’s false
claims will cause needless anxiety
to many Austrlaians who rely on
medicines to improve the quality of
their lives”.
Dutton stressed that Coalition
policy would not make changes to
the PBS; would not increase the
costs of pharmaceuticals to seniors;
would not remove or alter current
access to drugs on the PBS; would
not change the price of pensioners
drugs; would not change the cocontribution
scheme and would not
change agreements between the
govt and the industry.
Meanwhile, whilst seeking to
remain impartial the Guild
approached Labor Minister for
Health and Ageing Nicola Roxon
for her take on the situation.
Roxon predictably disputed the
the Coalition estimates, saying: “It
is simply not possible to deliver $1.2
billion in savings to pharmacy any
other way [than to disregard the
Fifth Community Agreement].
“Only Labor will protect the
Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme
and community pharmacy by
honouring the Fifth Community
Pharmacy Agreement into the
future,” she insisted.
Roxon also assured the Guild
that Labor is committed to
maintaining the remuneration
arrangements for community
pharmacy in the Agreement, as
well as the current model of
community pharmacy, and
pharmacies being independently
owned and operated by
pharmacists.
“We are committed to supporting
the pioneering role that community
pharmacy has played in developing
e-health – systems that will improve
safety and quality of care for
consumers,” she added.
The Guild said it was pleased that
both sides of politics had now given
explicit assurances that there will be
“no revisiting of the Fifth
Agreement or the MOU to extract
more savings from pharmacy”.
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