Pharmacists won’t be able to carry out tests from 1 January to check whether angina is viral or bacterial, one of their main unions announced on Tuesday. Community pharmacists concluded an agreement in September with Health Insurance for be paid up to six euros when they perform this test in place of the doctor. This measure was to come into force on Wednesday, January 1.
However, Health Insurance “informed us in December that the regulatory texts would not be ready on time, and that it would rather be done in the spring,” assured Philippe Besset, the president of the Federation of Pharmaceutical Unions of France (FSPF). . TROD (rapid diagnostic orientation tests), performed in a few minutes by taking a sample from the patient’s throat, help determine the cause of the condition.
Useless antibiotics in 80 to 90% of cases
In 80 to 90% of cases, recalls Philippe Besset, angina is due to a virus and antibiotics are useless. Only if the test confirms the presence of bacteria will the pharmacist refer the patient to a doctor, who can prescribe an antibiotic. The doctor can also, if he wishes to save time, delegate the test to the pharmacist. He then issues a “conditional prescription”: the patient will eventually get antibiotics only after performing the test in pharmacies.
For this mechanism to be put in place, the Directorate General of Health must still specify certain practical arrangements by decree, such as the age from which children will be eligible, said Philippe Besset. This report “is annoying, for the patients as for us”. But “the deadlines were a bit short”, and certain professionals will be able to use these few additional months to train, he put into perspective.
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