Renee Coffey (Griffith, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Health and Ageing. How is the Albanese Labor government strengthening Medicare by delivering cheaper medicines and providing real cost-of-living relief to Australians? Are there any risks to these important measures?

Mark Butler (Hindmarsh, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thanks to the Member for Griffith. She knows that the PBS is one of Australia's great social programs. For more than 80 years now, it's guaranteed access for Australians to the best medicines in the world at affordable prices. Since we came to government we have made more than 350 new or expanded listings on the PBS.

This month we added a new treatment for multiple myeloma called Darzalex, which is the first new treatment for that condition in 12 years. Around 2,600 Australians are diagnosed with multiple myeloma every year, and the stakeholder Myeloma Australia has been lobbying for this listing for years now. Their legendary ambassador—we all know Sandy Roberts—described the listing as 'absolutely fantastic news'. Until now, this treatment cost $440,000 for a course of treatment, but now 1,400 Australians every year will be able to get access to it at affordable PBS prices. And we're making those scripts even cheaper. Already, Australians have saved $1.9 billion at the pharmacy counter because of our cheaper medicines measures. Pensioners have—

Lights in the chamber having flickered—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The House is going to continue. We are in order. The minister, in continuation.

Mark Butler (Hindmarsh, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Pensioners have received 83 million additional free scripts because of our changes to the safety net threshold, and, in five weeks time, PBS scripts will be capped at just $25, the same price they were back in 2004. While the opposition opposed many of those measures last term, they promised in May that they would support all of these election commitments. But I regret to say that risks to that are emerging. In between organising a very successful drinks event on Monday night, the very busy member for Lindsay managed to squeeze in an exclusive interview with the Australian where she staked out a position on every single policy except communications, and she said that there was 'too much matching', and that she thought that the Liberal Party should lean in to health policy a little bit more. Well, I'll tell you this: we remember, and Australians know what it means when the Liberal Party says that they're going to lean in to health policy. We remember when the Leader of the Opposition leaned in to health policy and extended the Medicare rebate freeze for four more years. They are an absolute risk to a stronger Medicare, an absolute risk to cheaper medicines. No matter which of them you pick, the member for Lindsay or the member for Hume, they're all a risk.

Honourable members interjecting—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! There is far too much noise.

The Leader of the Nationals! One more interjection and he won't be here. Everyone's going to settle because I want to hear the member for Page. No, the member for Page won't get the call unless he leaves his phone. Order, members on my right. The member for Page has the call.