Pharmacy Daily | Rural pharmacy viability threatened

REDUCTIONS in funding through the Rural Pharmacy Maintenance Allowance (RPMA) reported by a number of pharmacy owners operating in remote areas this year, could result in services being cut, one pharmacist warns.

Rural NSW pharmacy owner, Robert Smith, said he had received the first RPMA payment under the new Modified Monash Model for rural classification (MMM), and it represented a cut in funding of $7,500 a year, for his Merriwa store.

Smith said the reduction in RPMA payments was likely to hit pharmacies in areas that were classified as PhARIA 5 and 6 communities under the previous model.

"Unlike regional cities and larger towns that are new beneficiaries of RPMA payments, economies of scale for expansion of pharmacy services (vaccinations etc) often don't stack up due to limitations in population size and the cost of sourcing and accommodating a second pharmacist on duty," he said.

"Effectively this means that the reduction in payment comes directly off the bottom line of the pharmacy's profitability.

"With reduced ability to employ locums it is logical that pharmacies will look at ways to reduce unprofitable/marginal periods of operation so they can get adequate time off away from the pharmacy.

"Unfortunately, this will likely mean decreased access to the pharmacy for patients living in these communities - unlike regional cities and larger towns there is only one choice of pharmacy."

Smith noted that many rural communities were already seeing reduced access to doctors warning, "any more that would reduce access to pharmacy would be devastating for these communities."

"Most PhARIA 5 and 6 communities in NSW have a Multi-Purpose Service with remote telehealth but these have only limited ability to assist with medication related issues," he said.

"A round trip to the next available pharmacy in our case is 130km in one direction and 200km in the other.

"The two closest pharmacies to our west (92km and 100km away) have also both had their RPMA payments reduced.

"We are at great risk of an inland void in pharmacy access."