GPs should have the option of writing 15-month scripts if clinically appropriate to save patients time and money, the RACGP says.

It is part of a suite of cost-saving measures the college is proposing ahead of May’s federal budget, which includes dispensing 60 days of low-risk medicines at once and cutting the time it takes to write PBS authority scripts.

The suggestion of 60-day dispensing for 143 medicines has the backing of federal MP Dr Monique Ryan; however, the previous federal government refused to implement the policy despite a recommendation from the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee back in 2018.

The college says taxpayers are covering $1.7 billion a year in dispensing fees, which would be slashed by halving the number of dispensings for medicines like statins and ARBs.