PRIME Minister Malcolm Turnbull (pictured) and opposition leader Bill Shorten both expressed support for the existing community pharmacy model, in speeches during the annual Guild Parliamentary Dinner at Parliament House, Canberra.
Turnbull, who spoke shortly after his arrival from a trip to South America, said "the established community pharmacy model continues to serve Australians well.
"Local community pharmacists are tuned into the unique needs of their area and the community of which they are part, and individual patients with whom they are friends and neighbours," he said.
Turnbull formally confirmed an election promise which will see changes to the dispensing remuneration of prescriptions for medicines for chronic conditions under the Remote Area Aboriginal Health Service arrangements.
Effective from 01 Jan 2017. "the total payment for these rural scripts will be equivalent to the full dispensing fee," he said.
"This recognises the additional effort and expertise required to issue these scripts," the PM added.
Shorten was the final speaker at the packed event, and said in a spirit of bipartisanship the Labor Party would support the new funding for the Remote Area Aboriginal Health Service scripts.
The ALP leader also reiterated his party's support for "the current system of community pharmacy, including pharmacy ownership by pharmacists.
"It is the best means to achieve a network of community pharmacies providing professional advice and support, with a view of the patient as a whole person," Shorten said.
He urged pharmacists to provide input on the future of the sector, saying he and Shadow Health Minister Catherine King were interested in ideas such as how to use Primary Health Networks to coordinate emergency patient access to PBS medicines after hours, a national real-time recording system for controlled drugs as well as over-the-counter codeine, and opportunities for women in the pharmacy industry to "advance to positions of leadership, ownership and entrepreneurship".
More on pages two and three.
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