Recent media reports have raised serious concerns about veterans' access to parts of the healthcare system. They also highlight broader concerns about high-volume telehealth prescribing and direct-to-consumer healthcare models.
Despite raising these issues with regulators, the Guild believes the current safeguards are not keeping pace.
National Councillor and Acting President of the Pharmacy Guild of Australia, Mr Chris Owen, said “Australians rightly expect healthcare decisions to be driven by what is best for the patient, not by commercial arrangements designed to maximises revenue. Regulators, policy makers and healthcare leaders must take a hard look at whether existing safeguards are keeping pace with these business models and whether vulnerable Australians are being adequately protected”.
It follows the announcement by Eli Lilly that they will be launching a direct-to-consumer platform, a move criticised by medical and pharmacy groups.
Mr Owen said “when vulnerable Australians are encouraged to change healthcare providers because of financial inducements or marketing campaigns, governments need to ask whether the system is delivering the right incentives. Healthcare is not a subscription service. Patients are not revenue streams and they should never be treated as such”.
