Glenn: The costs of taking multiple medicines – The impact of reduced work hours and low income
Listen to patients and health professionals speak about their experience with taking multiple medicines.
Glenn
Male
Age at interview: 50
Number of medicines: 6
Cultural background: Anglo-Australian
Glenn compares the affordability of his medicines with a Health Care Card to when he is working.
I had this discussion recently with Centrelink about low-income Health Care Cards and things like that. I did work out just recently how much it actually costs per month to take my tablets, but … and it just escapes me now … it's somewhere around about $400, which is a lot of money, whether you're working or you're not working. Now, that's paying full price, anyone walking off the street. If I'm on a Health Care Card, it costs even less than $30 a month. So a huge difference.
I guess I would like to see the government or the Department of Health and Ageing come up with a system that people who have to take multiple medications, even though if they're working, they take into consideration the amount of money they actually have to spend on medications to stay healthy, versus somebody who doesn't have to spend it. The income is a big difference. So whether there could be maybe not the amount of assistance that's involved with a Health Care Card, but maybe meeting it somewhere in between and just easing the burden of the cost of the medications.
I don't believe I have done anything to actually bring on the conditions and it's not … I'm not to blame type thing. But a bit of help might go a long way and particularly when it's mental health involved.
The Living with multiple medicines project was developed in collaboration with Healthtalk Australia.