AUSTRALIA must move with the times and allow pharmacists to improve access to oral contraceptives, Pharmacy Guild of Australia ACT Branch President, Simon Blacker, believes.
In an opinion piece published on The Canberra Times website on Christmas Day, Blacker noted that Australia was the second country to legalise "the pill", but has failed to innovate since.
"Despite some 80% of Australian women having used the pill at some time - many for decades at a time - and our proud history of giving women greater control over their healthcare, we are an outlier among comparable countries in just how difficult it is for women to access the pill," he said.
"Australian women are not just denied a choice in how they access the pill - it's costing them $170 over five years in GP visits, money women in other countries don't have to spend.
"It's time to innovate again. Let's give Australian women greater and more convenient access to their contraception.
"In Australia, pharmacists have had some scope in being able to continue supply of the pill, for women who have already stabilised on it without evidence of any adverse outcomes. However, pharmacists are currently only allowed to give patients one months' continued supply of the pill every 12 months, and only for variants listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) - excluding about 40% of Australian women who take a variant not listed on the PBS.
"Community pharmacists in Australia have both the training and the expertise to do more.
"For those women who have stabilised on the pill, it makes sense for pharmacists to have the ability to continue to renew their prescription."
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