Pharmacy Daily | Pathway to major Medicare reforms

THE Pharmacy Guild has welcomed the agreement among federal, state and territory leaders to make health reform a priority over the next 12 months.

This is in response to the Health Minister Mark Butler who has released the highly anticipated 'Strengthening Medicare Taskforce Report' (PD breaking new Fri).

Butler confirmed the Government had committed $750m to deliver the highest priority investments in primary care in line with the recommendations, with the plan to be included in this year's Federal Budget.

The report urges patient-centred care, supported by an expansion of multidisciplinary arrangements to manage the health of Australia's ageing population with more complex and chronic diseases.

New blended funding models, integrated with the existing fee-for-service GP arrangements, will allow teams of GPs, nurses, midwives and allied health professionals to work together to deliver the care people need, while recommendations also include an overhaul of the My Health Record platform and improvements to better connect clinical IT systems.

The Taskforce found that strengthening primary care with a greater range of health professionals working to their full scope of practice will optimise use of the health workforce across a stretched primary care sector.

This will deliver increased access to healthcare and improved equity of outcomes in rural, regional and remote areas, the report explained.

Recognising the unique challenges in rural and remote Australia, the report calls for a greater role for Primary Health Networks, including to commission nursing and allied health services to bolster general practice teams in these areas.

The Pharmacy Guild spokesperson said "we agree with the Prime Minister and the Health Minister that the interests of patients must always be at the centre of any healthcare reform.

"The Pharmacy Guild looks forward to engaging with all levels of government as well as other health professionals in negotiating better outcomes for patients and their communities.

"We support the Health Minister when he said that at a time of workforce constraints, it doesn't make sense as a country not to have every healthcare professional work to the top of their scope of practice," the spokesperson concluded.