Now is the time to invest in facilities and training  
 

George says the first thing pharmacies must do is educate themselves about what the 8CPA offers, so they can future-proof their businesses for the next five years. “It’s important to understand what the different funding pools are and how to access them,” he points out. “Now is the time for pharmacy owners to educate themselves, ask questions and approach the Guild or whatever professional group they’re part of.” 

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To access the 8CPA funding for professional programs, businesses need to make sure they invest in training and infrastructure, George advises. That includes making their pharmacies as attractive to customers as possible. “You could add a separate, professional consulting room that has a clinical look and feel,” he says. “Patients don’t want to feel like they’re having a vaccination in the middle of a retail store.”  

Another key action is for pharmacies to invest in their people. “Make sure all your pharmacists are trained to vaccinate,” he continues. “When I bought one of my pharmacies, we had three pharmacists without vaccination certificates, so that’s the first thing I fixed.” As an entrepreneurial pharmacy owner, George wants customers to be able to walk into his business any day of the week for a vaccination. “The opportunity to grow services like vaccinations is there now,” he says, “so get yourself organised, get yourself accredited. If you don’t have the training and the infrastructure, you’ll miss opportunities.” 

Better state regulation means it’s time for innovation too 

A better regulatory environment also makes it the perfect time for pharmacy businesses to innovate and expand their services. “Not only do we have a good funding package, but the regulatory environment is improving too,” George explains. “While 8CPA was being signed, the state governments who regulate us have become more confident in allowing us to expand. They’re asking if we can prescribe more medicines directly to patients instead of just dispensing.” 

With federal funding stable for the next five years and state governments giving pharmacies more room to expand, pharmacists have the freedom to provide services like vaccinations, but also to diagnose and prescribe directly. “The future is bright, not just for funding but for expanding our scope of practice too,” he says. “We can now have the confidence to invest in our services, our facilities and our people.” 

 Dollar discount to be phased out 

The government’s plan to phase out the optional dollar discount over the next five years will also remove one of the discounters’ advantages in the market. “Currently the big discounters are getting an advantage,” George explains, “because they’re willing to pay the optional dollar discount to attract more customers.”  

The original philosophy of the discount was to get closer to the NHS prescription system in the UK, which is a broad policy with a fixed price. “The dollar discount skewed it a bit because it wasn’t offered to everybody, which allowed discounters to grow,” he points out. “The new policy will create a level playing field by removing the big discounters’ advantage, which may lead to some restructuring in the sector.” Patients can also now be assured that their important medicines are the same price in every pharmacy, whether in their local areas or anywhere in Australia.   

The future is bright, but plan ahead for cashflow shortfalls 

The new deal is great news for the sector, but pharmacies must still have access to enough funds to survive temporary cashflow shortages. 60-day dispensing, for example, will continue to put a strain on cashflow because of its unpredictability. “No pharmacy can control how many 60-day prescriptions they get.” George says. “Even though we’re getting paid for that second pack, it’s not as much funding as we used to get,” he explains, “so pharmacies should be aware of the finance options out there to help them through shortfalls.”  

With the big funding uncertainties now solved, George is confident that the pharmacy sector has a very promising future to look forward to. “It makes all the difference to be able to make a stable, five-year income forecast,” he concludes. “Most pharmacy businesses have five-year leases on their premises and many loans are around five years in duration, so having this five-year roadmap makes a big difference." 

The headline message that every pharmacy business can take away from the 8CPA is that it’s time to reset and look forward with confidence. Whatever your ambitions, now is the perfect time to make them happen.