Capital Chemist Charnwood will 'let staff go' over PBS cheaper medicine changes, Samantha Kourtos says

Canberrans may pay less to access 325 medications from September 1, with the Albanese government allowing two month's worth of supply to be dispensed each time you go to the pharmacy.

Pharmacy Guild ACT has opposed the change, as pharmacists will receive less money in government subsidies due to fewer patient visits.

Samantha Kourtis, who runs Capital Chemist Charnwood, said she will have to reduce her trading hours when the measures come into play.

"I have no doubt that I am going to have to let staff go, I have no doubt that pharmacy will have to reduce its trading hours, we're open 7.30am to 9pm but we will not be able to afford to put registered pharmacists in that pharmacy 96 hours a week," she said.

"I cannot put the price up on other medicines. I cannot deliver more flu vaccines. I cannot advance my scope of practice enough to continue to deliver the community pharmacy services that our country needs."

Medications impacted include frequently prescribed antidepressants, such as fluoxetine, also known as Prozac, and desvenlafaxine, which has the brand name Pristiq.

Other medications are for people with conditions including type 2 diabetes, Crohn disease, hypertension, heart failure, severe acne, Parkinson's disease, Endometriosis, osteoporosis, breast cancer, epilepsy and asthma.

The changes are "very important" for people living with complex health conditions, CEO of Crohn's and Colitis Australia Leanne Raven said.

"People with complex chronic health conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease, more commonly known as Crohn's and colitis, they often have other treatments as well," she said.

"This will certainly decrease the cost of their medications and we definitely welcome that because these people have very high level healthcare costs for these conditions that are lifelong.

"They have a lot of interactions with the health system [already and] we're often trying to work, live our lives, do all the things that we all do [as well]."

President of the Royal College of General Practitioners Dr Nicole Higgins called the pharmacist's opposition to the changes a "scare campaign".

"A recent Westpac report found that pharmacies are reaping record profits, with the total consumer spending in pharmacies rising from $92.5 million in July 2019 to more than $123 million in January this year," she said.

"Some pharmacy owners may be concerned that they will lose retail sales; however, at the end of the day cheaper access to lifesaving medications must come before retail sales, it's as simple as that."

The federal government said the cost-saving measure is expected to save Australian's $1.6 billion over the next four years.

Health Minister Mark Butler claimed at least six million Australians will halve their medicine costs and need fewer visits to the GP and pharmacist.

Pharmacy Guild ACT president Simon Blacker said some of the medications in the list were already in short supply.

"There are 400 medicines listed as out of stock and another 70 in critical short supply and some of those 470 medicines are within this group of drugs," he said.

"When you already have drug shortages, any change to the dispensing model that provides greater supply at any one time will see challenges to the supply chain."

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However, Mr Butler called the claim there would be major medication supply issues as a result of the changes "patently ridiculous".

"This is not going to change the number of tablets dispensed over a period of time at all. It'll be exactly the same number of tablets," he told 6PR Mornings on Wednesday.

"We're phasing it in over a period of this year and next year.

"We also have very strong supply arrangements in Australia. Wholesalers are paid by taxpayers to have arrangements in place that mean if a pharmacy is worried about the supply it has on the shelves, they can ring the wholesaler and the wholesaler is required to supply that medicine within 24 hours."

Asthma Australia CEO Michele Goldman also welcomed the changes.

"We want to see as many people as possible receiving the treatment they need," she said.

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