Pharmacist fees to be regulated

2009-05-29 19:38

Pretoria - The recommended fees pharmacists charge for professional services will be regulated as soon as 2010, the SA Pharmacy Council said on Friday.

SAPC president Bada Pharasi said the fee structure would for the first time provide pricing transparency to the benefit of consumers and pharmacists alike.

Previously, consumers have been charged administration fees additional to the price of the medicines.

However, once promulgated, the services provided would be itemised, Pharasi said.

"Pharmacists have been factoring in other costs and the most common words that have been used are 'we add on an administration fee.

"It's important that people become aware exactly what it is they are paying for."

Pharasi emphasised that this would not necessarily mean people would be paying more for a visit to their local pharmacist.

"What we expect is that in many instances, patients are going to have to pay less than what they were paying."

For example, while a patient may have previously gone to a pharmacist for a "free" blood-pressure test or ask advice on medication, they were in fact paying for this service through other fees charged.

With the incoming regulations, consumers would now know exactly what they were paying for.

The rules governing the fee structure were published for comment in the Government Gazette on Thursday.

- SAPA