A new report from The Grattan Institute recommends that responsibility for setting pharmacy remuneration be shifted to the Independent Health and Aged Care Pricing Authority, in order to ensure Australians can safely and easily access essential medicines.

Pharmacies are a major recipient of government healthcare spending. They are set to receive $26 billion over five years for dispensing medicines and providing services. Yet the standard guardrails that should accompany billions of dollars of public expenditure – a strong evidence base, pricing for value and transparency on quality and outcomes – are missing in action.

That would be worrying anywhere, but it’s especially worrying in pharmacy. In this sector, these billions of dollars of public spending go to essential services delivered by private businesses, which are represented by a formidable lobby group that is also a major political donor.

We need strong governance to make sure Australians can safely and easily access essential medicines, and to ensure patients and taxpayers get good value for money. But the rules for the pharmacy sector seem to rotate around a different axis altogether: guaranteeing a great deal for pharmacy owners.

Pharmacy fees and regulations are set through Community Pharmacy Agreements. These agreements........

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