95bFM Prescription fees an ‘unnecessary barrier for patients accessing healthcare', according to pharmacists
2 May, 2023
Interview by Jessica Hopkins, adapted by Athena Li-Watts
Te Awamutu community pharmacy owner Gemma Perry (pictured) is calling on the government to make universal access to medication free. Photo: Supplied by Gemma Perry.
Aotearoa currently has a patient co-payment fee, requiring those 14 and older taking prescription medication to pay a $5 fee per item.
But a new survey of 150 community pharmacists in Aotearoa has found that government prescription fees contribute to serious health issues and cause significant community distress.
The patient co-payment is a government tax introduced in the 1980s, and pharmacies do not keep the money.
A newly formed group, the Prescription Access Initiative, is calling on the government to remove this fee.
Gemma Perry, a Te Awamutu community pharmacy owner who is a member of the initiative, told 95bFM’s The Wire that the fee creates a significant barrier for patients attempting to access medication, especially during the current cost of living crisis.
According to Perry, low income patients are having to choose between food or medication.
She said people are employing strategies such as taking medication every other day or using relief medication rather than their prescribed preventative medication, resulting in drastic consequences, including mental health crises, and amputations, kidney failure, and dialysis due to untreated diabetes.
While the prescription fee for fully funded medicine is $5 per item, Perry said private practices, specialists, and dentists can charge up to $15 per item.
On top of prescription fees, Perry said there is also a shortage in pharmacists, affecting pharmacy operating hours, further limiting patient’s access to medicine.
Perry said Pharmacists often have to spend most of their time with patients discussing financials, which can be demoralising for pharmacists.
“Pharmacists are saying, ‘How can I make a difference in a patient's health if the patient needing medicine can’t even access it?’”
In the aftermath of Cyclone Gabriel, areas most affected had the fee temporarily removed.
“When they removed that co-payment, the pharmacies in that area could focus on what we do best; making sure people get the right medicine and have everything they need to take that medicine correctly to keep them in good health.”
Recent University of Otago research has shown that removing the prescription fees would ease the burden of the current healthcare shortage by reducing hospital admissions.
Perry urged the government to remove the co-payment, as it is another “unnecessary barrier for patients accessing healthcare.”
“Our call to the government is to make universal access to medication free.
