‘Out-of-pocket’, coughing up cash for meds
Australians pay more out of their own pockets for medication than people in most countries. A new study, published in the most recent Australian Health Review, reveals the ageing population is just one factor which has contributed to the rise in medicine costs; as well as the increase in chronic disease.
Australians pay more out of their own pockets for medication than people in most countries.
A new study, published in the most recent Australian Health Review, reveals the ageing population is just one factor which has contributed to the rise in medicine costs; as well as the increase in chronic disease.
Australia joins countries like Germany, Japan, South Korea and Poland who are spending rising amount of money on medicines.
The Centre of Health Services Research at the University of Western Australia recently carried out the research, which showed the rising costs were
“putting pressure on governments” to find new ways to fund medicines.
Lead researcher, Anna Kemp, says changes to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) resulted in consumers contributing more funding in “direct out-of-pocket payments”.
She says as a result, “access problems” for some consumers such as the elderly and low-income earners were had from the funding debacle.
The study compared changes in patients’ “out-of-pocket” spending on prescription medicines to other countries’ spending costs on medications.
“We found spending on publicly subsidised medicines by Australian patients increased from $16 per person in 1971 to $62 in 2007,” Ms Kemp claims.
After adjusting for inflation, Ms Kemp said there had been a rise in patient expenditure on all prescription medicines to $134 per person in 2007; ranking Australian patients as fourth out of 14countries with universal pharmaceutical subsidies.
According to the results…
Australian patients pay 28% of national pharmaceutical expenditure; more than patients in South Korea (27%), Slovak Republic (26%), Sweden (22%), France, Luxembourg, Japan and Switzerland (17%), Germany (15%), Czech Republic (11%) and Spain (6%). However, patients in Australia pay less than those in Finland (36%), Denmark (33%) and Poland (34%).
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