Health Minister Mark Butler will introduce a bill to cut the price of medicines as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese responds to cost-of-living concerns.Credit:James Brickwood
Both major parties promised cheaper medicines during the election campaign,with the Coalition pledging a $10 reduction and Labor the $12.50 cut.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will say his government is “serious about delivering on our election commitments and easing the cost-of-living pressures” in the first lowering of PBS medicine costs in the scheme’s 75-year history.
The change will apply to about 17 million full-priced general scripts filled by 3 million Australians a year,such as Apixaban to prevent stroke,asthma medication Fluticasone Propionate + Salmeterol and diabetes drug Sitagliptin + Metformin.
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But the cuts will affect only a small minority of subsidised medicines,which cost the federal budget $13.6 billion a year. This is because many common medicines are already sold below the maximum PBS price as they have fallen off patent and are even cheaper in discount pharmacies.
Butler said the change would put close to $200 million back in the pockets of Australians each year and mean more people could get their medicine without worrying so much about the cost.
He pointed to Australian Bureau of Statistics data showing almost 1 million Australians delayed or didn’t fill their prescriptions in 2019-20 due to the high cost of medications.