Libby Coker (Corangamite, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I would like to begin by acknowledging the member for Dobell's emotional and heartfelt words. As a pharmacist she knows just how important it is for people to be able to afford medication that they desperately need. Choosing between buying much needed medications and putting food on the family table or helping another member of your family with their medication, making that choice, is a decision no Australian should ever have to make. My electorate of Corangamite is also impacted. I have pharmacists and GPs in my electorate who are telling me that it is a decision their patients are making.

I have a Drysdale pharmacist, Chris Walsh, in my electorate who says that many who come to him are struggling to afford their prescription medicines. Some families with chronic illness are foregoing their own health needs in order to pay for necessary medications for their children or to pay for food or power bills. It's unacceptable. That's why the Albanese government is committed to reducing the maximum amount Australians pay for their Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme medicines. This bill delivers against our commitment before the election.

It was a Labor government that first introduced the legislation to make life-saving drugs more affordable, back in the 1940s. It was John Curtin and Ben Chifley who fought hard to ensure affordable access to pharmaceuticals. Establishing the PBS wasn't easy. And it is now an essential pillar of our healthcare system. Of course, the other pillar of health care in this country is Medicare. That is also a Labor government creation. The Whitlam government introduced universal health care in 1975, known then as Medibank. The Fraser Liberal government made significant changes to it from 1976 and then abolished it in late 1981. It took the Labor Hawke government to reinstate universal healthcare in 1984 as Medicare.

Together, Medicare and the PBS are arguably the best universal healthcare system in the world, and they're certainly the envy of many nations. Universal health care is in Labor's DNA. That's why the Albanese government will continue to protect it, ensuring affordable access to health care for all. Medicare and the PBS go hand in hand. They are both essential to maintaining the good health of Australians.

The PBS remains a cornerstone of our healthcare system. However, it has to be adapted to keep up with modern medicine, community needs and rising living costs. That's why this bill is so important. The PBS provides significant direct assistance of around $13.8 billion each year to make medicines affordable for all Australians. The Albanese government is committed to ensuring that Australians continue to have access to affordable medicines. It's a refreshing change after nine years of neglect from the former government—years of economic and structural neglect that have contributed to the rising costs of living which are placing increasing financial pressure on Australians.

We know that some people are cutting back on essentials like medicines to make ends meet. This bill will help ease that squeeze on household budgets for millions of Australians—many of them, the most vulnerable in our community. The maximum cost to general patients for PBS medications has doubled since the year 2000. The previous government did little to mitigate the rise. For the first time in its 75-year history, the maximum cost of general scripts under the PBS will now fall, thanks to this bill.

This bill amends the National Health Act to reduce the maximum general co-payment under the PBS from the current maximum of $42.50 to just $30. This reduction of $12.50 for each script represents a saving of 29 per cent—almost one-third—for general patients. Around 3.6 million Australians with current prescriptions over $30 will immediately benefit from this Albanese government initiative. The 29 per cent saving doesn't include brand premiums, which are additional charges imposed by manufacturers. However, the optional discount will allow pharmacists to provide a further discount to general patients on those prescriptions with a Commonwealth price between the new co-payment of $30 and the current co-payment of $42.50. The amount paid by the patient will still be counted towards the safety net, ensuring that no Australian is adversely impacted by the changes.

Millions of Australian will be eligible for that saving under this bill, which will put close to $200 million back into the pockets of Australians each year. That means that an individual will save $150 a year for one monthly script or $300 to $450 a year for two to three scripts a month. And what an amazing difference that will make to families who are struggling.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics has said that the high cost of medications meant that around one million Australians delayed filling or didn't fill their prescriptions in 2019 to 2020. That's a worrying statistic, with real life health consequences. Cutting the price of medications by nearly one-third will mean that more people can afford to have the treatments they need to stay healthy without worrying so much about the price.

It's no wonder that, in my electorate of Corangamite, these changes are being enthusiastically welcomed, by both people needing medications and pharmacists dispensing them. Pharmacist Scott Wilkes, of Bannockburn Pharmacy, told me that this bill is a big step to ensuring medicines are affordable and relieving the pressures on vulnerable people in his community. He said that it's becoming more common for customers to cease having their scripts dispensed due to cost-of-living pressures. He related the story of a recent customer who wouldn't fill her own prescription; she only filled those of her children. She had received her monthly power bill and felt she simply couldn't afford to pay for her medication. That is tragic. She went without her medication to ensure a warm house for her kids.

Scott said that, while many elderly people are struggling with the rising costs of living, affordability appears to significantly worsen for those under 65 years of age. That's the age group most likely to have mortgages and children. So it's appropriate that people aged between 18 and 37 years old make up about 27 per cent of the portion of Australians who will immediately receive cheaper medicines. Scott said that the changes in this bill will provide relief for patients and their families who have had to make stark choices between buying essential food, paying for the energy to keep their houses warm and buying essential medicines.

It's no wonder that the National President of the Pharmacy Guild of Australia, Professor Trent Twomey, recently welcomed the changes in this bill and congratulated the government. Professor Twomey said:

Making medicines cheaper would help reduce medicine non-medical adherence, which directly contributes to higher healthcare costs, including preventable hospital admissions and re-admission.

Other peak bodies, including the Australian Patients Association, Chronic Pain Australia and Musculoskeletal Australia have also welcomed the measures in this bill on behalf of their patients. President of Chronic Pain Australia, Ms Fiona Hodson, said recently that the reduction in the co-payment would be welcome news to one in five Australians living with chronic pain. Ms Hodson said that medical affordability remained a key issue for patients as they manage their complex and chronic conditions.

Over the past year or so I have met with many of the local GPs in my electorate to better understand the challenges that they and their patients are experiencing. I spent a whole day in a clinic in my electorate and was told about the struggles that people are having in seeing a GP and in being able to afford their medications. GPs tell me that it is heartbreaking when they write a script for a much-needed medication for a patient knowing that there is little chance that they can afford to have it filled or at least not for the full period they need the medication for. It seems that patients are often deciding to fill a script that might give them immediate relief—for example, pain medication—while not filling a script that actually is very important for their longer-term health. Under this bill, general patients taking expensive medications, such as for the prevention of stroke or for asthma or diabetes, and so many other life-changing medicines will no longer have to choose between their script and household expenses. This bill will help to ensure that they receive the essential medical and pharmaceutical care needed to prevent severe illness and to keep healthy—and that is a great outcome.

But it is not enough to simply introduce these important cost-easing changes; it is essential that the changes are not overtaken by rising living costs. That's why the general patient co-payment will continue to be indexed on 1 January each year. The indexing from 2024 will be calculated off the new general co-payment amount, securing savings for Australian general patients well into the future. The Albanese Labor government will keep the cost of medicines down and help to ease the cost-of-living pressures that Australians are facing now. All Australians should have access to universal and world-class medical care. No-one should have to choose between filling a prescription that their doctor has said is important for their health or providing for their families.

Right now Australians are paying the high price of a decade of government with missed opportunities and drift. This bill will make a real difference to the household budgets for millions of families. The Albanese government is taking action. We are tackling the day-to-day concerns of Australians. We have plans to make medicines cheaper and to make it easier to see a doctor. Millions of Australians will benefit from cheaper medicines from this bill thanks to an Albanese government. Just as for Medicare, it was Labor that built the PBS, and it is Labor which will protect it. This bill will help ensure that all Australians can access affordable medicines when they need them.

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