A Chemist Warehouse board director has offered “in-principle” support to the proposal from doctors’ groups to let patients collect two months’ supply of medicines at once.

But Mario Tascone says the retail pharmacy giant wants three years’ warning if the Federal Government makes the move — to reinforce supply chains and guard against drug shortages. 

The RACGP and AMA are pushing the Federal Government to let patients collect 60 days’ worth of medicines at once for 143 common treatments, including statins and ARBs.  

It follows the decision by the Scott Morrison administration to ignore a 2018 PBAC recommendation that the rule change would benefit patients’ access and reduce their out-of-pocket costs, as well as cut the taxpayer bill for dispensing fees.