Pharmacy Daily | Hundreds may not be eligible for RPTA

THE Rural Pharmacy Network Australia (RPNA) has serious concerns for hundreds of smaller pharmacies in rural and remote Australia that will not be eligible for funding designed to offset losses due to 60-day dispensing (60DD).

Pharmacies dispensing under 22,913 scripts per year in MM5-7 will not be eligible for the newly announced Regional Pharmacy Transition Allowance (RPTA).

According to the Department of Health Fact Sheet, "pharmacies receiving the Regional Pharmacy Maintenance Allowance (RPMA) which are forecast, on average, to offset the estimated reduction in dispensing related remuneration (from both the government and patient co-payments) following the doubling of that allowance, will not receive the Regional Pharmacy Transition Allowance".

The government is assuming that RPMA funding will function to offset losses from 60DD for the lowest volume pharmacies in MM5-7, but this amount includes pre 60DD RPMA funding, which is not new money, asserted RPNA.

Further, the Rural Network modelling suggests that the RPMA "doubling" for many of these pharmacies will not be sufficient to ensure they do not go backwards.

"In fact, these pharmacies are at risk of being far worse off overall than those receiving the transition payment," the organisation stated.

"A pharmacy dispensing around 20,000 scripts per year could be worse off than a pharmacy dispensing around 50,000 scripts by around $120k over the four-year transition period.

"This is clearly not an equitable outcome for these pharmacies and their communities," RPNA added.

The purpose of the RPMA is to support access to PBS medicines and pharmacy services, but now it has "morphed into a mechanism to offset the impact of 60DD".

"This is a shifting of the goal posts which will make it very difficult for small rural and remote pharmacies moving forward," shared the RPNA.

While the government's attempt to extend a lifeline to rural pharmacies is an acknowledgment of the important role that rural pharmacies play, there are strong concerns across the Rural Network about whether the funding is sufficient and whether it is being allocated equitably.

"Many rural pharmacies will still be going backwards financially, some more than others, and adjustments will still need to be made in terms of opening hours, staffing, and pricing," said RPNA.

"It is difficult to see how this will not have a flow on effect to rural patients, especially in the most vulnerable communities.

"These are towns where access to health services are limited and the pharmacist may be one of the few, if not the only, healthcare professional available to patients.

"Many of these pharmacies have been serving their communities for decades, holding fragile local health systems together, and now their ability to continue to operate as they were before, is in jeopardy."

The Rural Network has written to the Government appealing for a review of this situation and calling on all pharmacies below the threshold, to contact and join the RPNA to assist its common cause.