PHARMACIST recognition: Federal Labor has questioned why community pharmacists do not receive a payment for COVID-19 vaccinations which is equal to that for other providers.
Addressing a Pharmacy Guild of Australia national webinar, Federal Opposition leader, Anthony Albanese said pharmacists were providing the same service, with the same advice.
He said pharmacists enjoyed strong trust, readily able to deal with issues such as vaccine hesitancy.
He recognised that there were challenges and opportunities ranging from an expansion of pharmacists' scope of practice to ensuring prescription medicines were more affordable.
With up to one-in-five Australians experiencing some difficulty paying for their prescribed medicines, this posed not just a personal health risk but also potentially much higher costs to taxpayers.
Guild National President, Trent Twomey, acknowledged Albanese's commitment to work in ongoing close collaboration with the sector and appreciated the Federal Opposition Leader's recognition that pharmacists were readily and consistently available as a backbone of their communities.
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