Pharmacists deny climb-down

Pharmacy dispensing under state drug schemes is expected to return to normal today, with the IPU claiming that the end of the current fees dispute with Health Minister Mary Harney did not constitute a climb-down on their part.

The IPU last night urged its pharmacist members to resume dispensing under State schemes in the interests of patient safety and in light of commitments made by the Health Minister.

However, it is not clear at this stage what these commitments are.

Hundreds of pharmacists withdrew from State schemes on August 1 in protest at the Minister's move to implement a major cuts in pharmacy fees. However, a majority of pharmacists did not take part in the IPU action.

While the IPU claimed progress had been made on some issues, it has ended its action without winning any obvious major concessions from the Mary Harney.

The Minister has stressed throughout the dispute that there can be no direct negotiation or mediation on the fees issue and that the fee cuts must stay.

The IPU has disputed the Minister's ../contention that there are legal barriers to negotiating or mediating on fees.

It was not clear today what, if anything had been conceded to the IPU that would have encouraged it to end the State drug scheme boycott.

IPU President Liz Hoctor said there action was over but the dispute was not over and denied there had been a climb-down. The IPU has warned that further disruption of services could take place in the future if issues were not resolved.

She told RTE's Morning Ireland that the decision to resume services was taken in the interests of patient safety and also because the Minister gave a commitment to carry out a review of the appropriateness and impact of
the fee cuts.

The IPU has said the Minister had agreed to cap the fee cuts at a total of €133 million and not a figure of €169 million that it feared would follow.

However, while the Minister has to date indicated that their can be talks on the a future expanded role for pharmacies, she has made no public concessions to date on capping total fee cuts or to undertake a review of
the impact of the cuts.

She has referred previously to a review of the measures taking place next year, but this was already provided for in the legislation implemented earlier this year that led to the fee cuts.

The Minister today indicated the door was open for the promised talks with the IPU, but it is still not clear when these will be held or what will be on the agenda.

An IPU spokesman told irishhealth.com that the €169 million total fee cut estimate had come from an independent review it commissioned.

Asked about conflicting statements being made by both sides on what exactly would be reviewed in any talks that were to take place, the IPU said this had yet to be confirmed and said there were background contacts taking place between the two sides.

The IPU said the HSE's contingency plans to provide medicines in areas affected by the withdrawal had failed.

However, the Minister said such contingency plans could never replicate the community pharmacy network.

Prior to the IPU's ending of the dispute yesterday evening, the HSE had said some pharmacies had requested to resume services under State drug schemes.

[Posted: Wed 12/08/2009]