Monday, January 18, 2016

NEW YEAR CHANGES TO THE PBS AND WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW



A number of everyday medications were delisted from the PBS in the New Year leading to a review by pharmaceutical companies on these products and Calanna Pharmacy is urging people to prepare.

In total 17 types of medicines have been affected by the changes which are part of a package of PBS reform measures passed by the Government in   early 2015.

The biggest changes include the delisting of a number of first line therapy medicines such as aspirin and paracetamol and the consequential manufacturer price increase on the commonly used Panadol Osteo.
  
Some of the more familiar medicine brands delisted include Astrix (aspirin),  Panamax (paracaetamol;500 mg tablet, 100ml liquid, 200ml liquid) and Panadol Osteo (paracetamol; 665mg modified release tablets), as well as Chlorsig eye drops (0.5%) and ointment (1%), Ducolax suppositories (10mg) Gaviscon P and Mylanta P.
  
The changes are part of the Federal Government’s PBS Access and Sustainability Package which the Government has estimated will save taxpayers around half a billion dollars over the next five years.

TIPS FOR MANAGING THE CHANGES

1. Know your active ingredient
Active ingredients are what makes your medicines work.  Some products may have more than one active ingredient in them.  If you are taking more than one type of medicine, check the active               ingredient to make sure you are not doubling up on a dose.  

Knowing the active ingredient means that if the brand of medicine you would normally take is not available, it is easier to find other products that are suitable for you to use.

2. Know your dose
Some medicines might have the same active ingredient but in different strengths.  If you are buying these medicines over the counter, it is important to know how much active ingredient is in each tablet and how many tablets you need to take to manage your health condition.  This information is also important when you need to take more than one product that may contain the same active ingredient – for example, cold and flu medicines contain paracetamol as do pain relief medicines.

3. Keep a medicines list
Consider preparing an up-to-date list of all your medicines that show important information, such as the active ingredients and the brand names.  Take this list to your Pharmacist and use it to identify suitable products that you can take if your usual medicine brand is not available.

4. Talk to a professional
Talk to us and talk to your GP about the changes and how they may affect you.


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