The RACGP has challenged NSW Premier Chris Minns to produce evidence supporting his expansion of pharmacy prescribing into complex conditions and disclose the Pharmacy Guild’s role in shaping the policy.
Statement attributable to RACGP President Dr Michael Wright.
“As they say, everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but not their own facts. We need evidence to inform health policy.
“Claims that Australians can’t access a GP simply don’t stack up. The RACGP’s latest Health of the Nation report found that 99% of patients who needed to see a GP were able to access one.
“The proportion of patients who could always see their preferred GP when needed has also increased to 67%, while fewer Australians are delaying GP care because of cost.
“These figures show that investment in general practice is delivering results for patients.
“Even the Premier’s Federal Labor colleagues are highlighting the progress being made in his own backyard.
“Barton MP Ash Ambihaipahar has told Parliament that 34 general practices in her electorate now fully bulk bill, while Banks MP Zhi Soon has reported that almost nine in 10 GP visits in his electorate are bulk billed.
“Those figures show what investment in general practice can achieve. The Premier should explain why, instead of building on that progress, he’s pushing a policy that lacks the rigorous evidence expected of major health reforms.
“Two independent reports have found there is still no robust independent evidence demonstrating that pharmacist prescribing for complex conditions is safe, delivers better patient outcomes, or reduces pressure on the health system. Yet NSW is pressing ahead with plans involving chronic conditions such as high blood pressure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
“These are serious conditions where missed diagnoses, inappropriate prescribing or inadequate follow-up can have devastating consequences, including strokes, heart attacks, kidney failure and life-threatening respiratory failure.
“This policy remains a solution in search of a problem. Patients deserve comprehensive, coordinated care from a medically trained specialist GP who knows their history, manages their whole health, and is accountable for their outcomes.
“Premier Minns announced these reforms at a Pharmacy Guild conference. From the outside, this looks like lobbyist-led health policy, plain and simple.
“We are calling on the Premier to release the full details of every meeting, communication and exchange of policy advice involving the Pharmacy Guild about these reforms. The public deserves to know whose advice is shaping their healthcare.
“Without the evidence, Premier Minns should pause further expansion into chronic and complex conditions. Patient safety must come before political interests and the demands of donors and lobbyists.”
~ENDS
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The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) is the voice of general practitioners (GPs) in our growing cities and throughout rural and remote Australia. For more than 60 years, we’ve supported the backbone of Australia’s health system by setting the standards for education and practice and advocating for better health and wellbeing for all Australians.
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