Interview - Dr Trevor Mudge, AMA Vice President, with Philip Clarke, Radio 2GB
COMPERE: The Australian Medical Association has given the thumbs down to the so called lifestyle prescriptions, saying doctors already have enough to write down. The Government is considering alternatives to reigning in the cost of the PBS - this is the scheme of course which subsidises the cost of medicines. Now, the Senate is set to reject it's plan to increase the cost of prescriptions - the government is looking at other ideas. One of their ideas is to write lifestyle prescriptions, you know the usual thing, eat less, get more exercise. I mean, do you need to walk away from the doctors with a written homily about that? I wouldn't have though so. Health Minister, Kay Patterson has apparently agreed to the Democrats plan for written lifestyle prescriptions as a way to ween patients off costly and unnecessary drugs, although not everyone is happy with that idea, as you can imagine. Particularly AMA Vice President, Trevor Mudge, and he joins me on the line. G'Day Trevor.
MUDGE: Hi, Philip.
COMPERE: What is a lifestyle prescription? Eat less, drink more? Um, no, hang on I have got that wrong, that's why I always get confused when I see the doctor. I say no - the doctor prescribed this additional bottle of wine that will blow out forever.
MUDGE: Oh, absolutely. It's gone up by, it's going up by 20% a year, a bit like doctors medical indemnity subscriptions, I have to say, perhaps we as all tax payers need to be concerned about both, and I am not suggesting that doctors shouldn't be concerned about the increasing cost, but there is not much point reigning in the cost of the PBS, only to see more people being admitted with heart disease for example, cause that didn't take their statins.
COMPERE: Hmm.
MUDGE: And I guess what we were hoping that the Minister and the Government would do, would be to sit down with the profession and try and find a solution to this problem of cost, which actually is outcomes focused, rather than red tape focused. And I think that, asking doctors to fill out a form, or give a lifestyle prescription, or whatever, everytime they give drugs is really not outcome focused, it's red tape focused.
COMPERE: Hmm. Yeah, fair enough point. Alright, thanks for that, Trevor Mudge from the AMA.
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