NEXT week's federal budget will see significant changes to the way medications are prescribed in Australia, with generic versions of drugs to be the default option in doctors prescribing software.
One of several medication-related measures estimated to save the government $1.8 billion over five years, the initiative will change the prescription of generic medication to an "opt-out" system, although doctors will still be able to actively choose the brand name drug.
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners supported the measure, with president Bastian Seidel saying "if we are committed to getting new expensive drugs on the PBS doctors should be committed to prescribing generics when appropriate".
However peak doctors group the Australian Medical Association is against the move, with AMA vice president Tony Bartone saying forcing a default generic option "would not be in the patient's interests".
Other groups including the Consumers Health Forum and the Pharmacy Guild have come out in favour of the change, with Guild President George Tambassis saying "generic substitution policy is good policy for the government.
"I think it's good policy for the patients so it's a win-win - it gives the government a little bit more room to actually sustain the PBS and actually gives the patients more choice as well," he said.
The budget is also expected to formalise a new agreement with Medicines Australia which would see prices the government pays for PBS medicines still on patent progressively reduce every 5 years.
The above article was sent to subscribers in Pharmacy Daily's issue from 03 May 17
To see the full newsletter, see the embedded issue below or CLICK HERE to download Pharmacy Daily from 03 May 17
