Australian Doctor Australian Doctor 12 May 2017 | Page 9

News
Generics to become the default setting
GEIR O’ROURKE
GENERIC drugs would
become the default setting on
GP software under a Federal
Government plan to cut pre-
scribing costs.
The move is rumoured to
be part of a $1.8 billion sav-
ings deal with the pharma-
ceutical industry that will be
unveiled in this week’s fed-
eral budget.
Pharmacists are embrac-
ing the idea, but AMA vice-
president Dr Tony Bartone
warns it will restrict doctors’
autonomy. “By changing the
default option, the govern-
ment is suggesting that they
will interfere with clinical
decision-making,” he says.
Dr Bartone says many of
his patients have poor health
literacy and some, from cul-
turally and linguistically
diverse backgrounds, do not
even know the name of their
medication.
“They rely entirely on my
advice and my knowledge of
that medication — the col-
our, the packaging, etc, so we
both know exactly what they
are taking.
“We haven’t had any con-
sultation on this, and we can
only wonder about how it is
going to work,” he says.
Minister for Health Greg
Hunt said any savings would
help subsidise new PBS drugs.
“Anything that we do is
about reinvestment in the
PBS. This means more drugs
at lower costs, better health-
care for all Australians,” he
told the ABC.
“Our commitment is that
there will always be 100%
doctor control over the pre-
scriptions that they give.”
At just 58%, Australia has
a lower rate of generic pre-
scribing than countries such
as the US (84%) and Canada
(70%).
Dr Stephen Duckett (PhD),
Grattan Institute health pro-
gram director, believes the
changes could help bring
generic prescriptions in Aus-
tralia in line with those other
countries. “I think it is a good
move, there is no downside to
it and a whole lot of savings,
and I don’t think it impinges
on doctor autonomy. But I
think that saving $1.8 billion
over five years could be a bit
of an ask.”
The $1.8 billion savings will
be reinvested in the PBS.
Fever trials:
Ibuprofen vs
paracetamol
MICHAEL WOODHEAD
IBUPROFEN may have a slight
advantage over paracetamol
as an antipyretic in kids, but
there is insufficient data to
conclude it is superior overall,
a study has found.
In a review of evidence
for antipyretics, researchers
at Monash Univ