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You only see one side of the coin, not the other side.
The average cost for dispensing a prescription in Canada is $14. Currently Ontario government only allows pharmacist charges $7. Under the new plan, it will be $8. The missing $6 will have to be gotten from the patients. There is no other way to maintain the cost for Pharmacist and provide any extra service.
If you have been in USA or Europe, you will see the different service from those countries' pharmacies.
For example, the big USA pharmacy stores has instructed pharmacist NOT TO TALK to the patients, because it will slow down the prescription process and increase the cost. Here, in Canada, a lot of patients rely on their pharmacists when dealing with drugs. Lots of pharmacists know the patients for more than 10-20 years.
With this reform, all this consultation will be diminished, also the currently free home delivery service will charge cost to the patients. It ends up eventually that patients need to pay more to get the same or even less service than currently they are enjoying.
Canada is an aging country, more and more people are in their 60-70's, and the number of prescriptions are increasing steadily. With this reform, I can see that in the mid term, Ontario's new graduated pharmacists will be harder to find the job. In the long term it will be bad for the Ontario residents. |
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