Discount chemist plans under threat

Plans for a new discount chemist in Warwick may be scrapped, after a clandestine deal between the Pharmacy Guild and the Federal Government that will restrict where pharmacies can be established.
Chemist Warehouse group commercial manager Damian Gance said, although Warwick was on a list of planned future sites for Australia’s largest chemist retail chain, it was now unlikely the new store would go ahead.
Changes to the Location Rules, which govern where pharmacies can be located, were agreed to in a series of meetings between the Pharmacy Guild and the Commonwealth Health Department earlier this year. Significant stakeholders, including Chemist Warehouse, were not invited to take part in these negotiations.
“We are launching a petition calling on our representatives in Canberra to stand up against the power of one of Australia’s most influential lobby groups,” Mr Gance said.
“These changes will not only threaten our business but will also restrict the access of Australians to discounted medicines,” he said.
“It is now very unlikely that our Warwick store will be able to go ahead under the changes,” Mr Gance said.
“Under the new rules, pharmacy owners will have to wait for a medical centre and a supermarket to be opened before they can establish a new pharmacy. As people living in growth areas know too well, community infrastructure takes time and comes many years after the population of an area has been established.
“Consumers have voted with their feet. One million customers come through our doors each week, we dispense 500,000 scripts.
“These changes have forced us to shelve plans for new stores in areas of community need, including Warwick. The new rules will have a disproportionate impact in growth corridors and the bush.
“Twenty per cent of our stores would not have opened under these new rules.
“We are calling on our customers to stand up for their right to affordable medicine and record their vote against deals struck contrary to their interests.
“Copies of our petition will be available in existing Chemist Warehouse stores and online at www.chemistwarehouse.com.au along with more information about the planned changes and what they will mean for consumers.
“Chemist Warehouse calls upon the Coalition and the Greens to vote against these changes in Parliament,” Mr Gance said.
At this stage, Chemist Warehouse has no plans of opening a store in either Stanthorpe or Tenterfield.