Pharmacy Daily | Guild codeine back-down

THE Pharmacy Guild's push to allow access to codeine in certain circumstances without a prescription once the drug is rescheduled early next year is dead in the water, with Health Minister Greg Hunt on Fri telling the RACGP annual conference that "the Guild has reversed its position".

Hunt also announced a further $1 million in funding to assist professional groups including the Guild, the PSA and doctors' organisations to communicate the changes to their patients.

While he noted that the final implementation of the rescheduling is a matter for each state and territory as to whether they adopt the decision in their own jurisdiction, "medical authorities, have, however, advised the changes will save lives and protect lives".

"Over-the-counter codeine products have been estimated to be a factor in nearly 100 deaths each year, with evidence that three in four pain-killer misusers had misused an over-the-counter codeine product in the last 12 months," the minister said.

He added that the changes were in line with international practice, with at least 26 countries only allowing prescription access to codeine-based products.

"Research shows that current over-the-counter low-dose medicines containing codeine for pain relief offer very little additional benefit when compared to similar medicines without codeine," he said, thanking the Pharmacy Guild and the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia "for their commitment to working with their members to assist patients during this transition".

The additional funding includes $325,000 for the Guild and PSA to provide pharmacists with materials to assist consumers with the change, along with $250,000 in support for the AMA, RACGP, RACP working with NPS MedicineWise to provide communication material to GPs and specialists.

There's also $250,000 for the Rural Health Alliance, the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine and the Rural Doctors Association of Australia to provide targeted communications to health providers in rural and remote communities, plus $230,000 in support of Painaustralia to communicate with consumers suffering chronic and acute pain.

A further $50,000 will help develop "targeted communication products and forums to communicate to Indigenous and Aged Care providers," Hunt said.