Government Funding in Case of Emergency.

If your pharmacy is located in Pharia 2-6 and  you have a medical emergency or personal tragedy,  you are eligible for Government

funding and an emergency locum supplied within 24 hours for a maximum of 7 days.  LocumCo as well as ELS (Emergency Locum Service) are open 24/7.  For more information please visit the ELS Website.

Medicine prices are value for money

Consumers have been getting good value for money when buying medicines over the past 20 years when compared with the rising prices for other commodities, and household income growth the Medicines partnership of Australia says.

Its December 2012 PBS Scorecard includes data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showing that between June 1991 and June 2012, consumer medicine prices have grown by 57% compared with overall prices in the economy growing by 70% over the same period. Based on this data, the prices consumers pay for their medicines have not kept pace with inflation over the past 20 years.

It also shows that in the same period, median household income grew by 118%, meaning that household incomes have grown at more than double the rate of medicine prices. This compares with other areas of household expenditure which have grown at more than the rate of general inflation and household income, such as the prices for utilities and petrol.

Over the same 20 year period, the prices consumers pay for medical and hospital services have increased by 191%, or more than three times the rate that medicine prices have grown, and faster than household incomes have grown over the same period. So while consumers may be feeling the pressure of higher prices for health costs, this has not been due to medicine prices. While individual households will vary, according to ABS data average consumers spend only $5.83 per week of their household budget on prescription medicines. This compares with $6.16 a week on milk, $11.34 a week on cigarettes, $12.17 on mobile phones, $30.50 on fast food and takeaway, $31.97 a week on meals in restaurants and clubs, and $36.66 a week on petrol.

The scorecard is online.