Cost Less of a Barrier to Medicines in NZ: Report
The Commonwealth Fund's International Health Policy Survey of Sicker Adults 2005 shows that patients in Australia, Canada and the US are more likely not to pick up a prescription because of cost than NZers. Nineteen percent of NZ patients did not pick up a prescription because of the cost. This compared with 20 percent of Canadians, 22 percent of Australians and 40 percent of Americans.
And while most NZers contributed at least part of their prescription cost (co-payment), NZ had the lowest percentage of people among the countries surveyed of patients paying more than $US100 per month for their prescriptions. NZ's percentage of patients paying over $US100 per month for their prescriptions was joint-lowest with the UK, at 3 percent. Australia's rate (9 percent) was three times higher, while in the US the figure was 10 times higher (30 percent).
In NZ 80 percent of medicines sold are government-subsidised. This compares with 54 percent in Australia, 37 percent in Canada and 19 percent in the US.
Other issues canvassed in the Commonwealth Fund survey include waiting times for treatment, communication between doctors and patients and medication errors.
An introductory article that is a good starting point to look at some of the results from this survey can be found at: http://www.cmwf.org/publications/publications_show.htm?doc_id=313012 |
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