Yesterday’s announcement that the Federal Government will fund pharmacists to initiate oral contraceptives and prescribe for UTIs carries heavy symbolism.

It lies in the fact that the government is deliberately bypassing the statutory mechanisms meant to prevent both patient and fiscal harm — the TGA and the PBAC.

If you go through Mark Butler’s media announcement and look at the text, you will see that, along with paying a $38 rebate for the consults, it will also pay $25 for the private scripts being written.

As was revealed at the government’s joint press conference with the Pharmacy Guild of Australia yesterday, this is at the same level as the PBS.