Mark Butler says Pharmacy Guild breached NDA, but chemists say they were given go ahead by government

Mark Butler says the Pharmacy Guild broke a non-disclosure agreement over Labor’s 60-day dispensing plan, but chemists reveal they were given the go-ahead by the government.

President of the Pharmacy Guild of NSW David Heffernan speaks to the media during a press conference in Sydney, Sunday, April 12, 2020. (AAP Image/Joel Carrett)

The Pharmacy Guild says Health Minister Mark Butler’s chief of staff told it to “tell your members and go your hardest” on the government’s plan to double dispensing of medicines to 60 days, undermining claims the lobby group broke a non-disclosure agreement.

Amid rising pressure from Labor backbenchers to address chemists’ concerns, the Pharmacy Guild said it was given the green-light by Mr Butler’s office to communicate Labor’s yet-to-be-announced policy to members in a meeting two weeks ahead of the May 9 budget.

The claim comes after Mr Butler told The Australian the guild had broken a non-disclosure agreement with government by discussing the policy before it was announced.

Health Department deputy secretary Penny Shakespeare also wrote to guild executive director Suzanne Greenwood on Wednesday to say the lobby group had ­“excluded itself from policy ­implementation discussions” by breaching the NDA.

The Health Minister said the “Pharmacy Guild chose to break their non-disclosure agreement with government prior to the announcement of this policy for their own reasons”.

However, Pharmacy Guild NSW president David Heffernan said Mr Butler’s chief of staff gave permission to the guild’s president, vice-president and himself in a meeting on April 19 to “communicate directly with members ­regarding the 60-day policy”.

“The chief of staff said ‘tell your members and go your hardest’,” Mr Heffernan told The Australian.

The minister’s office rejected the guild’s claim and urged the ­organisation to work with government. In a letter from the guild to the Health Department on April 24, the lobby group said: “The minister’s office has recognised the need for the guild to communicate the effect that increased maximum dispensing quantities may have on pharmacy viability.”

The flashpoint between Mr Butler and the Pharmacy Guild came less than a day after ­Anthony Albanese promised to “engage with community pharmacies”. The Prime Minister is facing calls from backbenchers for Labor to ease concerns of chemists, who say they will need to shut pharmacies or reduce services. NSW Labor MP Sally Sitou wrote to Mr Butler to raise the pharmacists’ concerns about ­potential medicine shortages, the speed of the change and cuts to ­additional services. Mr Butler said Labor would continue working with pharmacists and invited the guild to ­“engage in constructive discussions on the implementation of the policy and the significant reinvestment of funding in the pharmacy sector”.

The Health Minister and his senior advisers have held multiple meetings with Labor MPs to canvas their concerns with the policy.

In her letter, Ms Sitou told Mr Butler she would “appreciate it if you could investigate the concerns I’ve listed above and provide ­advice on what the government will be doing to assist pharmacists in the transition to 60-day dispensing”.

Ms Sitou on Thursday said “every member of parliament is there to listen to constituents and discuss the matters raised by constituents with relevant ministers”. “This policy will benefit six million Australians by giving them two months‘ worth of medicines for the price of one,” she said. “I want to make sure the community is able to get affordable and accessible medication and that’s exactly what this policy does.

“I look forward to being part of a government reinvesting the money saved with this measure into pharmacy, because we support a sustainable community pharmacy sector.”

Queensland Labor MP Graham Perrett said he had met with dozens of pharmacists over recent weeks and was concerned over the degree of backlash on the policy.

“I’m in a marginal seat. Pharmacists are trusted members of our community. If they have posters in windows accusing Labor of creating medicine shortages, that’s concerning,” he told The Australian.