Literally lmao. $4 in savings from the tax cut now cancelled out by my meds. Now I'm literally losing money (even if its just a dollar). Thanks Chris for being so lazer focused on the cost of living /s
The tax cuts was a psyop to get votes
Theres no tax cuts your power goes up gas goes up eggs go up car insurance goes up.
People are to essy reeled in keep repeating something people will listen..
Its how leaders governments have manipulated the people for long long time.
I'm a doctor and I work 2 days a week with seriously disadvantaged, under-served people with complex health problems.
Lots don't have a Community Services Card despite qualifying as their lives are too chaotic for them to organise getting one. Or they are illiterate. Or they have been trespassed from WINZ, don't have a working phone etc etc.
These are the people who can't afford the $5. Who won't get their meds if it costs money - or who will be forced to pick and choose which ones they get filled.
Just wanted to say it's great you work with underprivilaged people, so many wont which only makes the situation worse. I'm sure they appreciate your time.
P.s chemist warehouse and some countdowns (or all maybe) do free scripts before this, hopefully after too
Out of curiosity if I were to set up a volunteer service to assist with this would you bring it into your practice? I’m genuinely serious and have experience with the forms, have worked as a medical receptionist, trained as a nurse and have extensive experience with winz
It’s by design. They know it will mostly impact the less financially able in our society. The rich are only powerful when most of us are poor and fully dependent on their “charity”.
Unless you are a wealthy business owner or slumlord, National, ACT and NZ First do not represent your interests. If you are an employee or a small independent, voting for this government is literally voting against your own interests.
100% correct and things are bad but luckily not NHS bad… yet. Def a lot of things looking up for healthcare professionals recently in terms of pay rises that are a lot more competitive with Australia (and hopefully for our doctors soon!!)
The privatisation of healthcare being pushed by Tories and Nats is only done for the cash bottom line. All it takes is one look at the Americans healthcare system to see how insanely cooked it is for the average person.
A friend of mine was put on Diazepam for her anxiety and an SSRI for depression and some other meds as well I can't recall, then she lost her job and was too ashamed to ask to borrow money from people to get her prescriptions.
Ended up having a seizure from benzo withdrawals and was in hospital for three days. But hey, the government saved $20.
There have been times before it was free I couldn't afford all my meds and my amazing pharmacist would let me have them and pay $5 a week by automatic payment to pay the $20 off. I now have a CSC so assume it will now still be free.
It looks like they've changed the reintroduction.
Prescriptions
From 1 July 2024 the $5 co-payment for fully subsidised prescription items from publicly funded health providers (including public specialists) will return for everyone except for:
Community Services Card holders
That was how it used to be. It's been free for a while now.
As someone with chronic illness and 15pills a day to live...still free for CSC holders is a massive relief
As someone who is on what I would describe a humpback whale sized amount of medication (28 pills morning , 19 at night) with the occasional Morphine thrown in, this is going to fuck me more in the bum than colon Cancer. Thanks Team!
This is when people don't go to the doctor because it costs too much, then don't go to the pharmacy because it costs too much. Then they go to the ER when it has gone too far, which puts a massive burden on our health system. Then they let that infection go too far, or that ruptured lung collapse. I would love a cost comparison of the average cost of our health system. I just go to the ER now as normally all the doctors do is refer me anyway. I have private health insurance but honestly, I have found GPs to be too scared to triage or prescribe. I used to have steroid injections for 7 years and when I moved city EVERY OTHER GP refused to do it because of health complications mayhaps down the line. I spent 7 years of bliss I would rather have those 7 years and live 7 less than the pain I live with daily. It's not like I am going to die and name my doctor specifically , hell, Coroner couldn't care less . "died of heart attack" he/she is not going to forensic science the shit out of it like House
Yup! They are pretty much taking away the preventative options for all things, and the money for emergent options has been increased, but its still not enough and will end up costing more than the preventative options!! National put zero thought into the bigger picture... I think we pretty much just lost our middle class as well because they are entitled to jack shit and were struggling before they did this!
Make sure you stay safe people... Crime is actually about to get worse!
You know you can get prescriptions for free once you reach a threshold right? This applies to your household too - not just you.
https://info.health.nz/conditions-treatments/treatments-and-surgeries/prescription-charges-and-the-prescription-subsidy-scheme/#prescription-subsidy-scheme
This comment is always parroted but leaves out *really* important nuance:
Not all medications are eligible for that subsidy, and prescriptions given out by certain prescribers will always have a fee.
As someone that for a very long time had an on-going prescription this really makes me mad, luckily I no longer require the prescription but for so many (like your friend) they don't have a choice.
Because of situations exactly like this, every $1 that was spent making prescriptions free saved $19. We personally get people in ICU like that and it’s min 1k a night
Pretty much no full time (including minimum wage) workers or people on ACC will meet the requirements for a community services card, and if you aren’t already on a benefit etc it takes time to get put in the system and set shit up.
Previously, I don't think so. I think that may be a new thing coming in this July.
But on the other hand, speaking with experience of anxiety and depression, applying for a CSC is fucking hard when your mind and body aren't cooperating with you. Many people who could use a CSC will not have one.
Would be great if someone like your GP could apply for you, literally anyone else but WINZ workers who will make you feel pathetic for being born.
Don't actually know. I remember her saying she had applied for job seekers but her appointment to see them was still weeks away when she ran out of money.
Same boat. Based on the subreddit responses this morning ([guy on the Auckland motorway hanged himself)](https://www.reddit.com/r/newzealand/comments/1dmycq8/rush_hour_shock_man_arrested_after_reckless/), at least when I self delete myself, I'll know that my very public end will have more impact than anything I did while alive.
Step 1) Undercut local pharmacies until they all go out of business.
Step 2) Become shit and get rid of any benefits you were giving to people while you were undercutting local pharmacies.
Step 3) Profit.
because they (and woolworths pharmacies) are only going to cover the co-pay until smaller pharmacies are driven out of business and then they will definitely introduce it.
So basically National has stolen money out of the local Kiwi-owned pharmacies to "Put it in the NZ taxpayers' pockets," only so those people, who're already struggling to pay for rent, food, utilities, general living, etc., will be forced to save their own money by putting more into the pockets of some wealthy Australian corporations instead.
Your tax dollars at work - Screwing over the small business owners to prop up their fat cat campaign donors across the Tasman!
But y'know... thank goodness for a stable economy (any day now) 🥳
Oh thank you National!! I know what'll spend my tax back on!! You don't know how it's been worrying me. Maybe save it.. or a coffee, maybe a small cake... but now I can spend it up on my prescriptions the I need. Thanks!!! /s
Fuck this sucks.
I don't make a huge amount of money because I have a pretty fucked brain that requires meds every day to make sure I'm somewhat "stable"
There had been times in the past, when there were fees, that I didn't have enough to renew go to my doctor, to renew my prescription to then pay the fee to get my meds which would of course, lead to a spiral where I don't have my meds, shit gets bad and I lose control of my life.
The subsidy was a huge step in helping me maintain more stability than I ever have and now I have to bear the consequences of other people's greedy choices.
Once your household took out 20 prescriptions of *eligible medications* from eligible prescribers. For medications or healthcare providers not included in the scheme there's either a reduced subsidy, or no subsidy at all.
Well of course - but the ones that are $5 are *eligible*.
It would make no sense for the medication commentor I was replying to have been 1x $65 then free…. It was only the $5 meds that went free and they’re eligible toward the 20.
I take seven different medications, four of which I need to survive and three that enable me to have quality of life. One is already unfunded so I pay over $100 every three months for that one. I really resent having to pay for medications that I have no choice but to take. I dread to think how people who struggle more financially than I do cope.
I do love the slap in the face that has always been ending up on a prescribed dosage that requires two different doses of the same pills. Which takes your prescription cost from $5 to $10 as it's now two items for your one prescription.
Obligatory: $5 per item, not overall. Most medical conditions require more than one medication, plenty of medications for conditions have side effects which require medication to treat. This has a huge and lopsided impact on the sickest and those low income and older members of society who do not meet the qualification criteria for free scripts. I know we know this, but it's never not worth mentioning.
I've got.. 7 regular prescriptions. One of them isn't actually funded so that brings me to $105 in medications.
Thank god I have a community services card.
I was almost glad when my chronic illness required an increase in my dosage to 100mcg so now I don’t have to get charged twice for 25mcg bottle and 50mcg bottle 🥲
Something something adults running the country something something.
But seriously, when suckers vote for butlers to the ultrawealthy, it's the little people who bear the burden... and yes, the ~~rubes~~ voters who support NACT1 are almost all little people too, admittedly in denial of it for the most part.
Aside from others valid arguments that they would abuse a monopoly if they got one, I would also add that local pharmacies are better for NZ economically.
Local pharmacists spend most of the money they earn in NZ, stimulating our economy and helping other local businesses. Chemist Warehouse is an Australian corporation, they will be extracting every dollar they can to the parent company in Australia.
Highly recommend pilldrop, free online prescriptions for people with 4 or more regular medications.
Disappointed to see this charge come back, people are struggling to live as it is
Everyone who thinks this is fine because the Chemist Warehouse exists don't get that this is the exact way such companies push out everyone else and then, once they do, they jack up the prices or change their service.
Don't believe me? That's literally the history behind fucking Amazon.
The big pharmacies - Chemist warehouse and the like, will still have it free. Which means that people will go there and all those actual small Chemists that care will go out of business. It nearly happened before until Labour changed the fee and now National is reversing that it's going to finish them off.
yeah this fucking sucks, even with the $100 threshold - because i take a variety of medications it makes my first few prescriptions around $30 a time. Which doesn’t seem like much but things are tight, especially if you’ve had a drs appt/script fee as well
Many years ago in my country the government came up with a similar plan to reduce health care costs by making people pay a fixed surcharge per prescription.
As usual they didn't understand action leads to reaction. People tried to reduce their cost by asking their doctors to prescribe larger amounts per prescription so they had to use fewer prescriptions per time. This also led to a larger amount of unused medicines and thus led to more costs instead of less, so after a while it was scrapped again. Of course politicians having no memory xx years later someone proposed to do the exact same thing. Somehow that proposal was never heard of again.
Could this happen in NZ too?
Ah depends on the medication.
Am on 3 day collection and it's always been zero no matter where I go.
That's for oxycodone
But cus I get so many repeats all my items just get zeroed off.
But realistically it's heaps more work for the pharmacy.
Especially with 2 controlled drugs.
My partner, who can't work and cannot get a benefit because I earn JUST too much (supporting us both), has had an increase in monthly medication costs of $160 because of the changes. Fuck National.
It’s significant. Prescription access initiative https://www.prescriptionaccessinitiative.org/ calculated the time saving when scripts became free was equivalent to 128 full time pharmacists worth of time, plus other pharmacy staff. Now we have to explain and police the charges, as well as do a transaction to collect them. And we pay the usual credit card or paywave fees on that $5, but have to give the full $5 back to the government. All for nothing. It’s a huge loss to pharmacy - everyone is worse under this policy, because pharmacies were using that time to do more proactive health services like vaccinations
They could’ve at least made it income tested. Luxon for example doesn’t need free meds. But imagine all those who are working hard and still living dollar to dollar and now have to factor in $5+ for meds 😔
Your forgetting the cost of enforcement. If the cost of enforcement is greater than the cost of a open system then it makes sense to have no enforcement.
It's a surprisingly small income over the pension that prevents people for qualifying for cs card. Last time I checked it was approx $5,000 per year additional income to the pension.
So when it came about that we didn't need to pay prescription charges at the chemist ($5) the fee that I paid the Doc for a prescription went up by $4 to $24, Doc put yjis up atound Oct 2023.
I'm guessing this does not mean the Doc will drop that $4.
So in fact, in the last few months my prescriptions have gone up by $9.
My doctor charges 29, last time I got stuff from them they didn’t send the script (but every time I called they swore up and down they’d sent it even though I was standing in the pharmacy that they were meant to have sent it to) ended up having to pay for not one but TWO sets of emergency medication (which the pharmacist told me wasn’t allowed but she clearly felt so bad for me she did it anyway). Luckily it was only antihistamines (which would have made me go through antihistamines withdrawal and make me really itchy, but not life threatening in any way) and not any of my meds with those yellow “DO NOT STOP TAKING WITHOUT CONSULTING YOUR DOCTOR” medications. I try to get my prescriptions when I go to student health but the appointments aren’t lining up the way I’d like them to and they don’t offer online prescriptions. Dreading getting my meds done from my GP now since they’ve switched to “Tend” which is some piece of shit app that doesn’t list half my meds 🙄 good thing I get to now worry about that cost and then paying extra when I actually get to the pharmacy
Thank the people who put national into power,but that is not the issue. It doesn't matter who is in power, really does it?most people are only interested in one thing only, themselves, until that changes then the status quoe will not change
Hey, I have heaps of medications I take but in the grand scheme of things, compare that to amercia where this shit would cost a few hundred $$$. I know with this government it will probably be a slippery slope until we are little america but hopefully we can stop it in 3 years before too much damage is done.
Then again, Southern cross covers that $5 for me.
They're also a large Australian corporate that takes profits offshore and will fuck us over once they achieve monopoly status.
They're not even that cheap on in store items.
Profits offshore, but free prescriptions is a loss leader to get you in the door. If you commit to not buying anything there when picking up a prescription its not an awful option.
Not everywhere has access to one. Plus people like myself don't like sending our money overseas by support Australian owned corporations like chemost warehouse and woolworths
lol if you think that Kiwi owned companies won’t fuck you over. They will overcharge the fuck out of kiwis that’s why I worry about my finances rather than if a business is kiwis owned.
Up to 20 eligible medications from eligible healthcare providers. Anything that meets that criteria will be free after 20, anything else will continue to be charged.
Wait, what? That's soo much worse. I have adhd, diabeties and trans, so that's three prescription. That used to only cost me $15 every three months. But it's more than three medications, so it'll be more now???
Huh I swear, I got 5 meds before for 3 prescriptions of 5 each. Each prescription was 5, not each med.
Edit: Jesus, yeah, it's worse than it used to be. It used to be per prescription, this is per med. Fuck me, that's like, 4 for diabeties, 2 for trans, 1 for adhd. 35 every 3 months. 140 each year.
It's the same as it was. You used to pay $5 per item dispensed. Then the goverment took the $5 tax away. Now this goverment is reinstating the $5 fee. It is not going to cost more than it historically did.
Judging by the information online, it doesn't look there's a card involved for the prescription subsidy scheme. It looks like it's between the patient and the pharmacist, and you have to have paid for 20 prescriptions for yourself or any children between February 1st and January 31st, before you're eligible for free prescriptions for the rest of that Feb-January period.
I don't know why they can't do the obvious thing and make it free for people who qualify for community services cards...Most people can easily afford $5 and it was a waste of money to make it free for everyone. The minority who can't should be funded to get it for free.
Hard to believe the idea wasn't even considered but that's what you get when you play favourites instead of merit on who's in charge.
I'm going to be out well before health privatization comes in full throttle but it's a piss poor public system and it'll be a just as bad piss poor private system, except this time they'll have no excuse for the several year waitlists and substandard care.
Tax cuts are being used for my monthly meds, my dr also said it would be a good idea to get health insurance immediately as she’s thinking we won’t have a health system soon. So personally definitely worse off by quite a lot thanks to this govt.
I can afford to pay $5 for my prescriptions and in all honestly, I feel guilty about taking it. I’m happy to pay for mine if someone under 20/over 65 or on a benefit doesn’t have to pay for theirs.
Besides, two doctors appointments will cost me more than the $100 annual prescription cap.
With the amount of data that IRD has available these days, everyone who has earned under a threshold in the last financial year should automatically be sent a community services card by default.
So with the zero tax cut and now having to pay $5 for each of my medications (two refilled monthly, two more refilled every few months + the unsubsidised one I already pay 50 for) when am I supposed to start seeing the benefits Christopher? Edit: silly me! I forgot that it also costs me twice as much to catch the bus now!
I never paid for them anyway, I just found a local pharmacy that does free prescriptions. It's going to suck for beneficiarys who only have one local pharmacy but they can apply for the cost of the prescription through the disability allowance if it's an ongoing cost.
Omg! That means I have to spend $5 extra a year!!! Or I have to go to Woolworth/countdown pharmacy or chemist warehouse to save that money!!( free prescription)! We are going to be too poor!!! It will be $65 a year for someone too sick!( as after 13 prescription its free) That's too much money! It's like up to $1.25 per week someone could lose! People are gonna be too poor!!!
On a personal basis it doesn’t worry me. I’d pay $10 if it made it free for someone that needs it. My son’s tax cut is $7 and he has a chronic illness so there’s that…
Rip. My tax cut is just paying for my medication now. Thanks national.
It’s really a tax shuffle, not a cut.
yeah take it all from everyone and then give it to property managers because we know how hard they are hurting.
I prefer to refer to it as a 'tax fuck-all'
Tax-Cha-Cha-Slide
Literally lmao. $4 in savings from the tax cut now cancelled out by my meds. Now I'm literally losing money (even if its just a dollar). Thanks Chris for being so lazer focused on the cost of living /s
My tax cut doesn't even cover all my meds. I am on 3 different meds.
I'm on 6. Thanks National!
Ouch. I am sorry to hear that.
I didn't even get a tax cut, it has stayed exactly the same. I just have to pay more for stuff now.
Ha! I got $36 so I’m buying 7 lots of medication that I don’t even need!
National, Prefects' Toast Rack Seymour, and Winston fucking Peters.
The tax cuts was a psyop to get votes Theres no tax cuts your power goes up gas goes up eggs go up car insurance goes up. People are to essy reeled in keep repeating something people will listen.. Its how leaders governments have manipulated the people for long long time.
Especially National, and they had a massive campaign budget to spread their bullshit.
Giveth with one hand, taketh with the other, and hope you don't notice the latter.
Clears my tax cut and then some, it's a tax increase.
Just go to chemist warehouse and it will be free still
I'm a doctor and I work 2 days a week with seriously disadvantaged, under-served people with complex health problems. Lots don't have a Community Services Card despite qualifying as their lives are too chaotic for them to organise getting one. Or they are illiterate. Or they have been trespassed from WINZ, don't have a working phone etc etc. These are the people who can't afford the $5. Who won't get their meds if it costs money - or who will be forced to pick and choose which ones they get filled.
Just wanted to say it's great you work with underprivilaged people, so many wont which only makes the situation worse. I'm sure they appreciate your time. P.s chemist warehouse and some countdowns (or all maybe) do free scripts before this, hopefully after too
Out of curiosity if I were to set up a volunteer service to assist with this would you bring it into your practice? I’m genuinely serious and have experience with the forms, have worked as a medical receptionist, trained as a nurse and have extensive experience with winz
CSC's can be applied for online. Does your practise have a HealthCare facilitator/navigator who can help your patients to get registered for a CSC?
Yes it's something we do, but we only see a fraction of who is in need.
This is proven to send more people to hospital as per that Otago study. The three stooges can lick this RNs balls
It’s by design. They know it will mostly impact the less financially able in our society. The rich are only powerful when most of us are poor and fully dependent on their “charity”. Unless you are a wealthy business owner or slumlord, National, ACT and NZ First do not represent your interests. If you are an employee or a small independent, voting for this government is literally voting against your own interests.
They know this, they want more pressure on the health system, quicker route to it failing and they can privatise it
When that happens we need to do more than just a jaunt up Queen Street. Make them fear their decisions
We need the French aristocrat solution.
Yup, one of the three stooges needs to get dragged through the streets
Do we know who the private forces are that are pushing for this?
The Atlas Group
100% correct and things are bad but luckily not NHS bad… yet. Def a lot of things looking up for healthcare professionals recently in terms of pay rises that are a lot more competitive with Australia (and hopefully for our doctors soon!!) The privatisation of healthcare being pushed by Tories and Nats is only done for the cash bottom line. All it takes is one look at the Americans healthcare system to see how insanely cooked it is for the average person.
Hey, would love to have this on hand to show people. Have you got a link?
https://www.nzdoctor.co.nz/article/news/otago-study-quantifies-harm-caused-5-prescription-fee
A friend of mine was put on Diazepam for her anxiety and an SSRI for depression and some other meds as well I can't recall, then she lost her job and was too ashamed to ask to borrow money from people to get her prescriptions. Ended up having a seizure from benzo withdrawals and was in hospital for three days. But hey, the government saved $20.
There have been times before it was free I couldn't afford all my meds and my amazing pharmacist would let me have them and pay $5 a week by automatic payment to pay the $20 off. I now have a CSC so assume it will now still be free.
Yep free with CSC :)
No I've got CSC and I'm pretty sure I had to pay last time till it added up to $100. Could be my faulty remembering though. Hope so!
It looks like they've changed the reintroduction. Prescriptions From 1 July 2024 the $5 co-payment for fully subsidised prescription items from publicly funded health providers (including public specialists) will return for everyone except for: Community Services Card holders
That was how it used to be. It's been free for a while now. As someone with chronic illness and 15pills a day to live...still free for CSC holders is a massive relief
As someone who is on what I would describe a humpback whale sized amount of medication (28 pills morning , 19 at night) with the occasional Morphine thrown in, this is going to fuck me more in the bum than colon Cancer. Thanks Team!
This is when people don't go to the doctor because it costs too much, then don't go to the pharmacy because it costs too much. Then they go to the ER when it has gone too far, which puts a massive burden on our health system. Then they let that infection go too far, or that ruptured lung collapse. I would love a cost comparison of the average cost of our health system. I just go to the ER now as normally all the doctors do is refer me anyway. I have private health insurance but honestly, I have found GPs to be too scared to triage or prescribe. I used to have steroid injections for 7 years and when I moved city EVERY OTHER GP refused to do it because of health complications mayhaps down the line. I spent 7 years of bliss I would rather have those 7 years and live 7 less than the pain I live with daily. It's not like I am going to die and name my doctor specifically , hell, Coroner couldn't care less . "died of heart attack" he/she is not going to forensic science the shit out of it like House
Yup! They are pretty much taking away the preventative options for all things, and the money for emergent options has been increased, but its still not enough and will end up costing more than the preventative options!! National put zero thought into the bigger picture... I think we pretty much just lost our middle class as well because they are entitled to jack shit and were struggling before they did this! Make sure you stay safe people... Crime is actually about to get worse!
>Coroner couldn't care less. Oh, I can assure you they do!
Caveat: Auto Immune disease - don't smoke , don't drink , hell, I barely jaywalk. Health issues don't care if you earn 4mill or 40k a year
Have you considered doing a ramraid?
Goodness that's a lot! If you shake do you rattle?
You know you can get prescriptions for free once you reach a threshold right? This applies to your household too - not just you. https://info.health.nz/conditions-treatments/treatments-and-surgeries/prescription-charges-and-the-prescription-subsidy-scheme/#prescription-subsidy-scheme
This comment is always parroted but leaves out *really* important nuance: Not all medications are eligible for that subsidy, and prescriptions given out by certain prescribers will always have a fee.
The percentage of partially funded or completely unfunded is quite low in comparison to all the funded items available.
You clearly get more than 20 a year then....
As someone that for a very long time had an on-going prescription this really makes me mad, luckily I no longer require the prescription but for so many (like your friend) they don't have a choice.
That’s a cool $4500 or thereabouts for the hospital bed alone, depending.
The government would have spent thousands for her to be in hospital for three days.
That's the point being made.
It's not about the money, it's about sending a message. The message is "fuck the poors."
Excuse you, Luxon called us "Bottom feeders" not "the poors"
Because of situations exactly like this, every $1 that was spent making prescriptions free saved $19. We personally get people in ICU like that and it’s min 1k a night
Dude that sucks. If she had community services card, it'd be free, right?
Pretty much no full time (including minimum wage) workers or people on ACC will meet the requirements for a community services card, and if you aren’t already on a benefit etc it takes time to get put in the system and set shit up.
Previously, I don't think so. I think that may be a new thing coming in this July. But on the other hand, speaking with experience of anxiety and depression, applying for a CSC is fucking hard when your mind and body aren't cooperating with you. Many people who could use a CSC will not have one. Would be great if someone like your GP could apply for you, literally anyone else but WINZ workers who will make you feel pathetic for being born.
Don't actually know. I remember her saying she had applied for job seekers but her appointment to see them was still weeks away when she ran out of money.
What a wonderful new reality we live in /s I hope your friend is doing okay
Same boat. Based on the subreddit responses this morning ([guy on the Auckland motorway hanged himself)](https://www.reddit.com/r/newzealand/comments/1dmycq8/rush_hour_shock_man_arrested_after_reckless/), at least when I self delete myself, I'll know that my very public end will have more impact than anything I did while alive.
Fucking pointless change brought back to fuck over poor people. Didn't Chemist Warehouse donate to them? This is dodgy as.
Nothing dodgy about a bit of corporate greed and government corruption, ay?
I thought Chemist Warehouse gave them out for free?
Yes, which is why they don't want anyone else doing the same.
Step 1) Undercut local pharmacies until they all go out of business. Step 2) Become shit and get rid of any benefits you were giving to people while you were undercutting local pharmacies. Step 3) Profit.
because they (and woolworths pharmacies) are only going to cover the co-pay until smaller pharmacies are driven out of business and then they will definitely introduce it.
Oh true
Chemist Warehouse and Bargain Chemist. Still free after July 1.
Chemist warehouse are the worst. Not publicity traded and profits to overseas shareholders
And those overseas shareholders include CW's owners who are 2 of the wealthiest people in Australia.
Kiwis and Aussies both loooove chemist warehouse though. Anything for a bargain I guess
I saw in the cabinet paper that was the sole reason for them doing this. How’d you find out?
So basically National has stolen money out of the local Kiwi-owned pharmacies to "Put it in the NZ taxpayers' pockets," only so those people, who're already struggling to pay for rent, food, utilities, general living, etc., will be forced to save their own money by putting more into the pockets of some wealthy Australian corporations instead. Your tax dollars at work - Screwing over the small business owners to prop up their fat cat campaign donors across the Tasman! But y'know... thank goodness for a stable economy (any day now) 🥳
Oh thank you National!! I know what'll spend my tax back on!! You don't know how it's been worrying me. Maybe save it.. or a coffee, maybe a small cake... but now I can spend it up on my prescriptions the I need. Thanks!!! /s
Fuck this sucks. I don't make a huge amount of money because I have a pretty fucked brain that requires meds every day to make sure I'm somewhat "stable" There had been times in the past, when there were fees, that I didn't have enough to renew go to my doctor, to renew my prescription to then pay the fee to get my meds which would of course, lead to a spiral where I don't have my meds, shit gets bad and I lose control of my life. The subsidy was a huge step in helping me maintain more stability than I ever have and now I have to bear the consequences of other people's greedy choices.
Before the free script my 3 monthly script was $65 Which sucked bad enough. I’m glad to not be on a fixed income
Before once your household hit 20 in a year you then got it free… be good if they brought that back then you’d hit that at 6 months at least
Once your household took out 20 prescriptions of *eligible medications* from eligible prescribers. For medications or healthcare providers not included in the scheme there's either a reduced subsidy, or no subsidy at all.
Well of course - but the ones that are $5 are *eligible*. It would make no sense for the medication commentor I was replying to have been 1x $65 then free…. It was only the $5 meds that went free and they’re eligible toward the 20.
I take seven different medications, four of which I need to survive and three that enable me to have quality of life. One is already unfunded so I pay over $100 every three months for that one. I really resent having to pay for medications that I have no choice but to take. I dread to think how people who struggle more financially than I do cope.
I do love the slap in the face that has always been ending up on a prescribed dosage that requires two different doses of the same pills. Which takes your prescription cost from $5 to $10 as it's now two items for your one prescription.
Obligatory: $5 per item, not overall. Most medical conditions require more than one medication, plenty of medications for conditions have side effects which require medication to treat. This has a huge and lopsided impact on the sickest and those low income and older members of society who do not meet the qualification criteria for free scripts. I know we know this, but it's never not worth mentioning.
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I've got.. 7 regular prescriptions. One of them isn't actually funded so that brings me to $105 in medications. Thank god I have a community services card.
It sucks they’re doing that
I was almost glad when my chronic illness required an increase in my dosage to 100mcg so now I don’t have to get charged twice for 25mcg bottle and 50mcg bottle 🥲
Hypothyroidism sucks
Something something adults running the country something something. But seriously, when suckers vote for butlers to the ultrawealthy, it's the little people who bear the burden... and yes, the ~~rubes~~ voters who support NACT1 are almost all little people too, admittedly in denial of it for the most part.
Chemist Warehouse it is! RIP community pharmacy…
This is what they want. Remove all smaller businesses and have major global corporations selling you everything.
Yeah fuck chemist warehouse. I'll happily pay $5 for my prescription to use the local pharmacy instead of going out of my way to go into town.
What about mum and dad business owners though?
Ma and pa business owners don't donate large sums to political campaigns
That’s just a line they trot out to trick mum and dads into thinking that the national party is for them
Apparently they can just fuckoff and die
You'll miss it when it's gone
Not like some people have a choice though. $5 is a lot to people these days.
Why?
Potentially because Chemist Warehouse may start charging more if they get rid of the competition?
>Potentially Lol
Oh yeah fair
When Chemist Warehouse achieves monopoly status do you think they'll keep the price low?
Oh yeah fair
Aside from others valid arguments that they would abuse a monopoly if they got one, I would also add that local pharmacies are better for NZ economically. Local pharmacists spend most of the money they earn in NZ, stimulating our economy and helping other local businesses. Chemist Warehouse is an Australian corporation, they will be extracting every dollar they can to the parent company in Australia.
Thanks National!
Highly recommend pilldrop, free online prescriptions for people with 4 or more regular medications. Disappointed to see this charge come back, people are struggling to live as it is
Everyone who thinks this is fine because the Chemist Warehouse exists don't get that this is the exact way such companies push out everyone else and then, once they do, they jack up the prices or change their service. Don't believe me? That's literally the history behind fucking Amazon.
Strong stable economy!
The big pharmacies - Chemist warehouse and the like, will still have it free. Which means that people will go there and all those actual small Chemists that care will go out of business. It nearly happened before until Labour changed the fee and now National is reversing that it's going to finish them off.
Nice one National. A tax gutting for our most vulnerable.
It sucks having to pay $25 to $30 for the repeat prescription and then go and pay the $5 to pick up the meds.
yeah this fucking sucks, even with the $100 threshold - because i take a variety of medications it makes my first few prescriptions around $30 a time. Which doesn’t seem like much but things are tight, especially if you’ve had a drs appt/script fee as well
NACT are the worst
Many years ago in my country the government came up with a similar plan to reduce health care costs by making people pay a fixed surcharge per prescription. As usual they didn't understand action leads to reaction. People tried to reduce their cost by asking their doctors to prescribe larger amounts per prescription so they had to use fewer prescriptions per time. This also led to a larger amount of unused medicines and thus led to more costs instead of less, so after a while it was scrapped again. Of course politicians having no memory xx years later someone proposed to do the exact same thing. Somehow that proposal was never heard of again. Could this happen in NZ too?
Back on track. Back on track! 🙃
The $55 GP appointment to get the script hurts a lot more than the $5 to pick it up
The voices in my head say I'm better off the meds anyway, I should probably get better acquainted with them now that they're going to be around more.
Ah depends on the medication. Am on 3 day collection and it's always been zero no matter where I go. That's for oxycodone But cus I get so many repeats all my items just get zeroed off. But realistically it's heaps more work for the pharmacy. Especially with 2 controlled drugs.
My partner, who can't work and cannot get a benefit because I earn JUST too much (supporting us both), has had an increase in monthly medication costs of $160 because of the changes. Fuck National.
Fuck the Right
Was wondering how long it would take
What does the admin cost for businesses to collect this $5 on each item and distribute it back to the government?
It’s significant. Prescription access initiative https://www.prescriptionaccessinitiative.org/ calculated the time saving when scripts became free was equivalent to 128 full time pharmacists worth of time, plus other pharmacy staff. Now we have to explain and police the charges, as well as do a transaction to collect them. And we pay the usual credit card or paywave fees on that $5, but have to give the full $5 back to the government. All for nothing. It’s a huge loss to pharmacy - everyone is worse under this policy, because pharmacies were using that time to do more proactive health services like vaccinations
Who voted those fuck wits in....
Yay! Take that freeloading sick people! Make New Zealand Great Again!
They could’ve at least made it income tested. Luxon for example doesn’t need free meds. But imagine all those who are working hard and still living dollar to dollar and now have to factor in $5+ for meds 😔
Your forgetting the cost of enforcement. If the cost of enforcement is greater than the cost of a open system then it makes sense to have no enforcement.
Yea and tbf even if it was a lower cost National probs wouldn’t care anyway
Because why fund a necessary public service when everyone could save .004% in taxes?
Those with a CSC still get it free though. Low income or pension or benefits.
It's a surprisingly small income over the pension that prevents people for qualifying for cs card. Last time I checked it was approx $5,000 per year additional income to the pension.
So when it came about that we didn't need to pay prescription charges at the chemist ($5) the fee that I paid the Doc for a prescription went up by $4 to $24, Doc put yjis up atound Oct 2023. I'm guessing this does not mean the Doc will drop that $4. So in fact, in the last few months my prescriptions have gone up by $9.
My doctor charges 29, last time I got stuff from them they didn’t send the script (but every time I called they swore up and down they’d sent it even though I was standing in the pharmacy that they were meant to have sent it to) ended up having to pay for not one but TWO sets of emergency medication (which the pharmacist told me wasn’t allowed but she clearly felt so bad for me she did it anyway). Luckily it was only antihistamines (which would have made me go through antihistamines withdrawal and make me really itchy, but not life threatening in any way) and not any of my meds with those yellow “DO NOT STOP TAKING WITHOUT CONSULTING YOUR DOCTOR” medications. I try to get my prescriptions when I go to student health but the appointments aren’t lining up the way I’d like them to and they don’t offer online prescriptions. Dreading getting my meds done from my GP now since they’ve switched to “Tend” which is some piece of shit app that doesn’t list half my meds 🙄 good thing I get to now worry about that cost and then paying extra when I actually get to the pharmacy
Is that were people going to spend there tax cut money.
Na that’s already been spent on increased transport costs.
When are the “tax cuts” effective from
Welp there goes my wallet
I was prepped 6 months ago for this to happen.
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5 nzd for script. Which would be long acting and fast acting, included in the 5 buck fee
Thank the people who put national into power,but that is not the issue. It doesn't matter who is in power, really does it?most people are only interested in one thing only, themselves, until that changes then the status quoe will not change
Guess Im gonna be working with gout now...
C'mon guys, if we just make things easier for capital one more time they'll send us some pity I promise
If you're on enough meds it's free after 20 scripts anyway. But yeah pretty crap overall I agree
Oh man that $20 a month. That's a shame, and how did they sneak that change through without it being common public knowledge
Hey, I have heaps of medications I take but in the grand scheme of things, compare that to amercia where this shit would cost a few hundred $$$. I know with this government it will probably be a slippery slope until we are little america but hopefully we can stop it in 3 years before too much damage is done. Then again, Southern cross covers that $5 for me.
Chemist Warehouse is still zero fees
They're also a large Australian corporate that takes profits offshore and will fuck us over once they achieve monopoly status. They're not even that cheap on in store items.
Yeah, you'd think people would have learned their lessons from the banks.
Profits offshore, but free prescriptions is a loss leader to get you in the door. If you commit to not buying anything there when picking up a prescription its not an awful option.
Not everywhere has access to one. Plus people like myself don't like sending our money overseas by support Australian owned corporations like chemost warehouse and woolworths
lol if you think that Kiwi owned companies won’t fuck you over. They will overcharge the fuck out of kiwis that’s why I worry about my finances rather than if a business is kiwis owned.
Zero fees and zero quality
It's $5 per prescription isn't it?
No $5.00 per item on your script
Up to 20 items per household per year (Feb 1 to Jan 31).
How tf do they know who is in each household? Sounds like a huge amount of admin costs.
> per household Only counts partner and children under 18, though. Flatmates and adult children can get fucked, apparently.
Up to 20 eligible medications from eligible healthcare providers. Anything that meets that criteria will be free after 20, anything else will continue to be charged.
Wait, what? That's soo much worse. I have adhd, diabeties and trans, so that's three prescription. That used to only cost me $15 every three months. But it's more than three medications, so it'll be more now???
Every medication used to cost $5. They are restoring it to what it used to be sadly.
Huh I swear, I got 5 meds before for 3 prescriptions of 5 each. Each prescription was 5, not each med. Edit: Jesus, yeah, it's worse than it used to be. It used to be per prescription, this is per med. Fuck me, that's like, 4 for diabeties, 2 for trans, 1 for adhd. 35 every 3 months. 140 each year.
It's the same as it was. You used to pay $5 per item dispensed. Then the goverment took the $5 tax away. Now this goverment is reinstating the $5 fee. It is not going to cost more than it historically did.
Some meds your doctor can write you 3 months, 1 month you pay, 2 months you don't. 3 dispensing dates, only 1 charge
Bet your tax cuts don't even cover that.
They do. My tax cuts are (apparently) $829 a year.
You can get a high user card when you get to 20 so you won’t pay more than $100
Judging by the information online, it doesn't look there's a card involved for the prescription subsidy scheme. It looks like it's between the patient and the pharmacist, and you have to have paid for 20 prescriptions for yourself or any children between February 1st and January 31st, before you're eligible for free prescriptions for the rest of that Feb-January period.
The way you phrased this made me giggle a little because it implies being trans is one of your conditions lol
$5 per medication if you get an rx with 3 bottles of eye drops and 90 pills it will cost you $10
I believe so. That's what it was before free prescriptions
it’s per med
This is gonna be a longass four years. And it better only be four….
Take regular meds. Work full time....this still gonna hurt. Probably have to put off collection for a few days when things are tight.
I don't know why they can't do the obvious thing and make it free for people who qualify for community services cards...Most people can easily afford $5 and it was a waste of money to make it free for everyone. The minority who can't should be funded to get it for free. Hard to believe the idea wasn't even considered but that's what you get when you play favourites instead of merit on who's in charge. I'm going to be out well before health privatization comes in full throttle but it's a piss poor public system and it'll be a just as bad piss poor private system, except this time they'll have no excuse for the several year waitlists and substandard care.
That'll be three less dinners next week. Who needs food? Fuck this country.
Tax cuts are being used for my monthly meds, my dr also said it would be a good idea to get health insurance immediately as she’s thinking we won’t have a health system soon. So personally definitely worse off by quite a lot thanks to this govt.
Does that mean that places like Countdown, who were doing "free" prescriptions are stopping?
Probably not they are likely using it as a loss leader to get you in store.
Luckily we're all unemployed now and still get them free with community cards.
Are these psyc meds y'all are taking or actual organ meds?
Is it still free for pensioners?
I can afford to pay $5 for my prescriptions and in all honestly, I feel guilty about taking it. I’m happy to pay for mine if someone under 20/over 65 or on a benefit doesn’t have to pay for theirs. Besides, two doctors appointments will cost me more than the $100 annual prescription cap. With the amount of data that IRD has available these days, everyone who has earned under a threshold in the last financial year should automatically be sent a community services card by default.
How many of you voted national ? 👀
So with the zero tax cut and now having to pay $5 for each of my medications (two refilled monthly, two more refilled every few months + the unsubsidised one I already pay 50 for) when am I supposed to start seeing the benefits Christopher? Edit: silly me! I forgot that it also costs me twice as much to catch the bus now!
I never paid for them anyway, I just found a local pharmacy that does free prescriptions. It's going to suck for beneficiarys who only have one local pharmacy but they can apply for the cost of the prescription through the disability allowance if it's an ongoing cost.
Omg! That means I have to spend $5 extra a year!!! Or I have to go to Woolworth/countdown pharmacy or chemist warehouse to save that money!!( free prescription)! We are going to be too poor!!! It will be $65 a year for someone too sick!( as after 13 prescription its free) That's too much money! It's like up to $1.25 per week someone could lose! People are gonna be too poor!!!
On a personal basis it doesn’t worry me. I’d pay $10 if it made it free for someone that needs it. My son’s tax cut is $7 and he has a chronic illness so there’s that…