EMPOWERING pharmacists to practice to their full scope would reduce patients' out-of-pocket costs, Pharmacy Guild of Australian Victorian Branch President, Anthony Tassone believes.
Concerns about rising medical expenses were flagged by SBS's Insight program on Tue night, and the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare's (AIHW) Health Expenditure Australia 2017-18 Report, released yesterday.
SBS reported that Australian patients incur $30 billion in out-of-pocket spending when accessing health services, more than twice the amount contributed by private health insurers, noting a study of 11 developed economies found Australians were the second most likely nationality to avoid accessing health care "because they can't afford it", after Americans.
Tassone said the AIHW report highlighted that patients often face non-subsidised costs when accessing GP services that pharmacists could assist with.
"In other countries, like the UK and Canada, pharmacists are playing a greater role in their health systems helping reduce the cost for patients by up to $1 billion a year," he said.
"Giving pharmacists a greater role to treat common ailments, issue repeat prescriptions for stable and ongoing conditions, and administer more vaccinations, will provide better health outcomes and make accessing basic healthcare more affordable for Australian families."
Speaking from the audience of the SBS Insight program, one health economist noted that specialists were free to set their own changes above the Medicare rate, with non-hospital-related costs not always covered by private health insurance.
The economist added that there was no cap on the level of fees specialists can charge their patient, adding they were not regulated.
Pharmaceutical Society of Australia South Australia and Northern Territory Branch Vice President, Sam Keitaanpaa, took to Twitter after the show aired, noting the Australian Medical Association had published 26 articles critical of pharmacy over the last two years, compared to three pieces advocating against requiring specialist medical professionals from listing their fees.
"Time to shift focus?" he asked.
The above article was sent to subscribers in Pharmacy Daily's issue from 26 Sep 19
To see the full newsletter, see the embedded issue below or CLICK HERE to download Pharmacy Daily from 26 Sep 19