THE PEOPLE OF S. A. UNITE AGAINST UNFAIR MEDICAL SCHEME PRACTICES

WE, THE MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA, URGE THE MINISTER OF HEALTH TO INTERVENE AND PROTECT THE PUBLIC FROM THE INCREASING POWER OF MEDICAL SCHEMES IN PRIVATE HEALTHCARE, WITH PARTICULAR REGARD TO THE PRACTICES OF PRESSURISING PATIENTS AND PHARMACISTS TO CUT COSTS BY INAPPROPRIATELY SUBSTITUTING MEDICINES.

Rejecting substitution places the pharmacy at risk of lower levels of reimbursement by the scheme. This is not in the patients’ best interests – changes in medicine regimes should be clinically evaluated, and, most importantly, not be driven by cost alone. Given the fact that the prices of medicines and the fees of pharmacists are already regulated, this intervention is not warranted. Furthermore, the pharmacist would be held liable for any inappropriate substitution.

This practice is not in the best interests of patients, as it is driven by schemes as a cost cutting initiative rather than as a concern for patient care and wellbeing. Pharmacists are also expected to assume administrative responsibility for actively ensuring that patients only receive scheme formulary medicines.

This activity is negatively impacting on THE ECONOMIC VIABILITY OF INDEPENDENT COMMUNITY PHARMACISTS, THEREBY further COMPROMISING THE HEALTHCARE SYSTEM OF SOUTH AFRICA.  Further, it places responsibility on the pharmacist and the doctor for the therapy change, without the appropriate clinical oversights being in place. The focus on cost cutting IS AN ADMINISTRATIVE BURDEN ON INDEPENDENT COMMUNITY PHARMACISTS, who have to ensure the patients’ full formulary compliance, irrespective of outcomes, thereby compromising their PROFESSIONAL DUTIES of CARE for PATIENTS.

COMMUNITY PHARMACISTS REMAIN AN INTEGRAL PART OF OUR COMMUNITY HEALTHCARE SYSTEM AND MUST BE PROTECTED FROM THE “BULLYING” TACTICS OF MEDICAL SCHEMES.

WHY SHOULD THE PEOPLE OF S.A SIGN THIS PETITION:-

Administrators of Medical Schemes are:

-               interfering in the treatment prescribed by doctors for patients

-               compromising long term and trusted relationship between patient and community pharmacists

-               not mandated to implement therapeutic substitution and control patient therapy

-              placing undue pressure on community pharmacists to implement switching of medicines against a formulary which limits patients’ options, in order for the pharmacist to obtain reimbursement and to be recognised as providers by the scheme.

-               switching prescribed treatment with therapeutic equivalents without proper clinical interventions, with a risk to the patient, a liability which the pharmacist and practitioner assume.

-               limiting the pharmacy choices of scheme members to those contracted pharmacies who “conform”, even in outlying areas.

-               forcing PENALTY co-payments on their members who do not utilise the contracted community pharmacies nor accept generic and/or therapeutic substitution

-               interfering with the patient’s right of “FREEDOM of CHOICE” of community pharmacy, and, in some cases destroying the patient’s ability to see the pharmacists who know their health status and medical history

-               directing members to postal pharmacy distribution of CHRONIC medicine, and the Public are losing their right to a personal interface to discuss medicines with professionals.  

Please sign and share this petition so that we can save Independent Community Pharmacies from closing, and the public from a failing private healthcare system.