PHARMACY Guild executive director David Quilty has asked federal health minister Greg Hunt to follow up his positive speech at APP last week (PD 10 Mar) with urgent action.
Writing in the Guild's Forefront update yesterday, Quilty said: "What absolutely distinguished Minister Hunt's speech was his genuine empathy for community pharmacies as small businesses and for pharmacists as health practitioners".
He noted the minister's emphasis on improving outcomes through a stronger focus on preventative and mental health (with pharmacies an active participant in these pillars of his broader health policy agenda) plus a commitment to the development of pharmacy plan.
Quilty said such a plan was long overdue to provide clarity and certainty for community pharmacies, covering the risk-share agreement, location rules, access to community pharmacy programs and primary health care integration.
He said the Guild's national president George Tambassis and the pharmacy viability team were working closely and constructively with Minister Hunt and his staff.
With price disclosure, script volume shortfalls, the 6CPA risk share issue and the high cost of handling hepatitis C drugs, "our sector is at a tipping point," Quilty concluded, saying community pharmacy owners were looking to the minister to urgently deliver on these critical issues.
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