Supermarkets and pharmacies will have to accept physical cash under new plans to keep money in the economy.
It’s one of a number of measures going before Cabinet this morning.
The use of physical cash has fallen from 20 billion before the pandemic to 13.5 billion in 2022.
While ATM usage has declined by almost 45%.
The Government is now launching new Access to Cash laws to keep physical money in the economy.
Supermarkets and pharmacies will have to accept cash as medicine and groceries are essential services.
While there will have to be a certain number of ATMs per 100,000 people and within 10km of where they live.
Also going before Cabinet are plans to make sure people who rent out their rooms don’t lose their medical cards.
Certain medicines are soon going to be available over the counter like the contraceptive pill and medicines for minor illnesses.
