Jess Teesdale (Bass, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise today to speak in support of the National Health Amendment (Cheaper Medicines) Bill 2025. This is a bill that delivers practical, meaningful cost-of-living relief to Australians, including thousands of families across my electorate of Bass. This bill goes to the heart of what good government is about. It's about fairness. It's about making sure that every Australian, regardless of the size of their bank balance or where they live, can access the medicines they need to stay healthy and care for their families.

I want to share a story about a family from northern Tasmania. This story took place a few years ago. It's about two children, both neurodiverse, both with multiple diagnoses, who thrived on consistency, who needed the stability of daily medication to feel comfortable in their own skin, complete daily tasks and find success and enjoyment at school. But their parents faced impossible choices, with rising rents and grocery bills, climbing electricity bills piling up and then the cost of prescriptions on top of that. There were months when they had to choose between buying ADHD medication and putting food on the table. When these children missed that medication, they felt sick, restless and unable to focus. They became frustrated and upset when they couldn't keep up in class. Their parents struggled deeply, weighing up these choices when times were particularly tough.

I remember speaking to a pharmacist in Kings Meadows and another in Ravenswood, right in the heart of Bass, who told me similar stories of parents standing at the counter and weighing up which prescription they could afford to take home and which one they would have to leave behind. No parent in Australia should ever have to make that choice and, with this bill, fewer families will.

Why does this matter? From 1 January next year, the maximum cost of a PBS prescription for general patients will fall to just $25. That is the lowest price in more than 20 years. The last time medicines were this affordable was 2004—again, under a Labor government. This reform builds on Labor's record of delivering cheaper medicines, and what an impressive record that is. In January 2023, the Labor government made the largest cut in the history of the PBS, dropping the maximum cost for scripts from $42.50 to $31.60. We introduced 60-day prescriptions and we made filling scripts much easier. This bill is the next step—a more than 20 per cent cut to the maximum cost of PBS medicines, saving Australians over $200 million each year. That is immediate, practical and fair cost-of-living relief delivered by a Labor government.

I represent Bass in northern Tasmania. We are a region of proud and hardworking people. But, like in many parts of Australia, many families in Bass are doing it tough. But, since being elected to government in 2022, the Labor government has ensured that the people of Bass have already saved more than $9.2 million at the pharmacy counter. That is $9.2 million that families have been able to keep in their pockets, $9.2 million that has meant older Tasmanians can keep taking their medicines without having to skip doses and $9.2 million that has meant parents can afford both asthma medication and groceries. Across Tasmania as a whole, our state savings since 2022 total more than $32 million. That is what cost-of-living relief looks like on the ground—real savings for real people on every corner of our island.

As I mentioned, pharmacists in Launceston and right across Bass have told me the same thing again and again. They've seen too many people walking away from the counter without their medications, too many saying, 'I will come back next week when I get paid.' This isn't just an anecdote. National data confirms it. Last year 1.2 million Australians delayed or went without filling a prescription because of the cost. We know what happens when people can't afford their medicines. Their physical and their emotional health suffers. When their health suffers, our health system bears the cost—more hospitalisations, more acute episodes and more pressure on GPs and emergency departments. This bill is not just about cheaper scripts. It's about better health outcomes, stronger families and healthier, happier communities.

There's also a powerful case economically for cheaper medicines. Every time someone is able to take the medicine that's been prescribed to them, we reduce the risk of a costly hospital admission and we keep people well enough to keep working, studying and caring for their loved ones. Affordable medicines mean fewer people forced into hospital beds because they can't afford to manage their own condition at home or within their community. It means less time off work, less absenteeism and greater productivity. And, over time, it means a reduced burden on our health system—savings not only for households but for the taxpayer. This bill is not just good for health; it is good for the economy. It is smart, responsible policy that invests in people and saves money in the long run.

Cheaper medicines are only part of the story. Labor is also making sure that new and life-saving medicines are being added to the PBS. For example, from August this year, a new treatment for advanced Parkinson's disease was listed, cutting the cost from $131,000 a year to, currently, just $31.60 a script. A new combination therapy for stage 3 melanoma was also added, turning a life-saving $31,000 treatment into an affordable PBS medicine. They're not just numbers. These are life-changing reforms for Australians facing some of the toughest health battles imaginable.

And then there is neuroblastoma. Neuroblastoma is a rare but aggressive cancer that strikes our very youngest children. Before PBS listing, families faced bills of more than $417,000, nearly half a million dollars, for the medicine Ifinwil. I was very close to a family whose beautiful baby girl was diagnosed with neuroblastoma in the first few months of her life. The physical and emotional toll this takes on a family and those who support them is unspeakable. At those times, every ounce of energy goes into caring, loving and hoping. The very last thing that any parent should have to worry about is whether they can actually afford life-saving treatment for their child. I'm so happy to say that this particular girl beat the odds, thanks to the great work of our healthcare system and the absolute, unbreakable tenacity of her incredible family. She's a fit and healthy teenager whose main concerns are similar to the everyday challenges for her peers. That is why the PBS matters, that is why cheaper medicines matter and that is why our robust healthcare system matters. It's not just economics; it's dignity, it's relief and it's hope.

Our government's commitment to health goes beyond that pharmacy counter. In Launceston we have a busy Medicare mental health clinic, which is a safe and welcoming environment where people can get support free of charge in in a quiet, beautiful place. It has become almost a second home to some. We also have the Launceston Medicare Urgent Care Clinic, which has seen over 38,000 visits in just two years. It's one of the busiest in the nation. This has saved an estimated and self-reported around 19,000 trips to the emergency room at our LGH. That is thousands of families who are able to see a GP, get treatment and avoid waiting hours in a cramped and very uncomfortable emergency department.

In Bass we're also lucky enough to have an endometriosis and pelvic pain clinic, which is run exquisitely well by Family Planning Tasmania. For women and those with a uterus who have lived in pain and dismissal for too long, this service has been life changing. I've spoken with women who in the past were made to doubt themselves and made to feel weak by doctors who had not had the opportunity to learn more about endometriosis. We are now working towards a future, through these clinics and through greater public awareness, where nobody will ever feel dismissed again.

These investments show Labor's vision in action: health care that is affordable, accessible and close to home.

Let's be clear. Labor is the party of Medicare. Labor is the party of cheaper medicines. The last time PBS medicines cost $25 or less was in 2004—again, under a Labor government. For nearly a decade, those opposite had the chance to act. They had a chance to ease that burden at the pharmacy counter, but they didn't do it. It is Labor—it is the Albanese government—who is once again stepping up to fix this. And we're not just planning for today. This is very important in that traditional three-year cycle of government. We're actually looking ahead to 2030. The freeze for concession medicines will remain in place until then, locking in affordability for pensioners and concession card holders for the rest of the decade. Our approach is clear: health care is a right; it is not a privilege. Every reform we deliver builds towards a healthier and fairer future for all Australians.

In just three years the maximum cost of each script on the PBS will have dropped from $42.50 to just $25. I think back to that family that I mentioned earlier. I imagine the relief in their home when they can afford their children's medication, week after week, without sacrificing the groceries. Imagine the difference for children in classrooms across the country—comfortable, focused and thriving. That is what this bill delivers: fairness, dignity and opportunity. The size of your bank balance should never determine whether you or your children can get the medicine or the care that you need. This bill ensures that in Bass, and across Australia, families can care for their health without having to choose between food and medicine. That is what good government looks like and that is what Labor delivers. I am proud to commend this bill to the House.

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