The National President of the Pharmacy Guild of Australia, Professor Trent Twomey, said that community pharmacies have been working hard with other patient representative bodies to put the case for more affordable medicines for patients.
“On behalf of patients, we and our partners the Australian Patients Association, Chronic Pain Australia and Musculoskeletal Australia are thrilled that both major parties have now committed to making medicines more affordable if they are elected.
“A bipartisan commitment to address the cost of prescription medicines is a win for patients around the country who have been doing it tough and is a step in the right direction to restoring universal access to the PBS.
“Community pharmacies see patients struggling to afford medicines from prescription to prescription and from paycheck to paycheck. As the cost of living rises, patients are increasingly finding themselves being forced to choose between putting food on the table or buying the medicines they and their families need.
“We don’t want to see Australians ending up in emergency, in hospital, or with long term damage to their health because they have been forced to delay or skip taking essential medicines due to cost.
“This announcement is an acknowledgement of the importance of medicine affordability at a time when Australians are struggling with the cost of living.”
The cost of medicines has become a key issue for voters with 30 per cent saying they’re struggling to afford medicines on the PBS, a jump of 6 points since January this year, according to new research by independent polling firm Insightfully. The number of voters skipping medicines entirely has also gone up, with 17 per cent of voters now saying they or their families have been unable to purchase medicines due to cost. This is a three point jump since January, when the price of medicines on the PBS went up again.
CEO of the Australian Patients Association Stephen Mason said that the issue of affordability of prescription medicines is an ongoing concern for many Australians.
“Our research has found that almost 36 per cent of people believe that prescription medication is too expensive and 20 per cent of people say it’s outside of their regular budget.”
President of Chronic Pain Australia, Fiona Hodson is advocating that all Australian’s living with chronic pain receive Triple A standards of care – Awareness, Accessibility and Affordability.
“The reduction in the co-payment will be welcome news to the one in five Australians living with chronic pain. Medicine affordability is a key issue for these patients as they manage their complex and chronic conditions.”
CEO of Musculoskeletal Australia Rob Anderson said that consumers are struggling to afford medications to manage their own health and are concerned that their weekly budget is getting squeezed thinner and thinner.
“A recent survey we conducted found that 62 per cent of respondents had experienced financial stress as a result of having a musculoskeletal condition. 39 per cent said that the cost of medications caused this financial burden. We’re urging Canberra to take this issue seriously so that the many Australians that live with a musculoskeletal condition can access their vital medicines.”