Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today to speak on the National Health Amendment (Cheaper Medicines) Bill 2025. The Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme is a critical component of Australia's healthcare system. For decades it has ensured that Australians can access affordable medicines and treatments when they most need them. Under the PBS patients make a co-contribution towards the cost of their medicine and the Commonwealth covers the rest. For this year the patient co-contribution is $31.60 for general patients. This bill seeks to reduce that co-contribution from $31.60 to $25. It is an important change and one that the coalition supports. In fact, this bill reflects the coalition's commitment at the last election to guarantee cheaper medicines and lower the PBS co-payment to $25.

Right now Australians are under incredible pressure. Labor's cost-of-living crisis has forced families into impossible choices. More and more Australians are delaying or avoiding filling their scripts because they simply can't afford to do so. Last year alone eight per cent of Australians said that they delayed or went without their scripts because they couldn't afford to fill them. No Australian should have to make the choice between filling their scripts and putting food on the table—and that's on top of the 1.5 million Australians who said they avoided seeing the doctor because they couldn't afford to do so. That's 1.5 million Australians who didn't get a script at all.

This bill is a step towards easing the burden that has grown increasingly heavy under the Albanese Labor government. It ensures that Australians have more affordable access to medicines and treatments they need at a time when health care has never been more expensive. In fact right now it has never been harder or more expensive to see your GP. It builds on the coalition's proud record when it comes to the PBS. When in government, the coalition listed around 2,900 new or amended medicines on the PBS, an investment of over $16.5 billion. That investment ensured Australians had affordable access to potentially life-saving and life-changing medicines that would otherwise have cost them thousands of dollars, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars.

We also maintained our commitment to list every single medicine that had been approved through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Council on the PBS. This stands in stark contrast to Labor's record. When they were last in government, Labor stopped listing new medicines on the PBS because they ran out of money. That despicable decision meant that Australians missed out on treatments for severe asthma, chronic pain, schizophrenia, blood clots, IVF, endometriosis and prostate conditions. Sadly, history is repeating itself. Late last year almost 50 medicines were deferred from consideration because the PBAC imposed a cap on the number of medicines that they would review at their sitting. Why? Because the government has not provided adequate resources and the health minister turned a blind eye. Patients were again left waiting for access to new treatments at affordable prices.

We've seen the consequences of Labor's delays with the PBS—for example, for women living with endometriosis. The government announced the listing of Ryeqo on the PBS before the election, but that medicine had not been recommended for listing for more than 12 months. So for 12 months women who suffer from endometriosis waited for the government to make that decision—an entire year of avoidable delay for women suffering chronic pain. That is simply not good enough. We are now hearing from the pharmaceutical sector that the government is putting much more difficult terms for listing medicines on the PBS after those medicines have received PBAC approval. Like the capping of the number of medicines to be considered by PBAC, this is another backdoor way that the government is avoiding listing medicines on the PBS.

The coalition also initiated the health technology assessment review, an opportunity to look at how we can improve timely access to medicines for Australian patients. The findings of that critical review were brought down a year ago. In September 2024 the Albanese government received that review, yet they have done absolutely nothing for a year, despite the fact that we all agreed that it was absolutely essential that more was done to make sure the process didn't hinder Australians getting timely access to medicines. We say to the government that the time for reviewing things is over. The time for action is now. Patients are sick of waiting. The opposition is sick of waiting because this government is sitting on its hands when it comes to actually letting Australians get access to cheaper medicines.

So, whilst we absolutely support this bill, we call on the government to do more: to properly resource the PBAC listing process, to end the delays, to deliver on the HTA review and to ensure that Australians have timely, affordable access to the medicines they need. That is why I will be moving a second reading amendment, circulated in my name, which seeks for the Senate to note with concern the government's continued delays in implementing the recommendations of the health technology assessment review and to condemn the Prime Minister for his failure to secure a meeting with the President of the United States to advance Australia's interests in relation to possible pharmaceutical tariffs and other issues.

The coalition will always back Australians when it comes to getting access to affordable medicines. We led on cheaper medicines in the 2022 election, we committed to the $25 PBS co-payment in 2025 and we will continue to hold this government to account for its record of delays and failures. I commend the bill to the Senate. I move my amendment:

At the end of the motion, add ", but the Senate:

(a) notes with concern the Government's continuing delays in implementing the recommendations of the Health Technology Assessment review; and

(b) condemns the Prime Minister's failure to secure a meeting with the President of the United States to advance Australia's interests in relation to possible pharmaceutical tariffs and other issues".

Corinne Mulholland (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

At the last election, Labor promised the Australian people cheaper medicines. The National Health Amendment (Cheaper Medicines) Bill 2025 is about keeping that promise. Under this bill, the most you will pay for a script on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme is $25—just 25 bucks—the lowest amount since 2004.

Let me take you all back to 2004 for a moment. The hit TV show Friends was in its final season. Usher was top of the charts with 'Yeah!' featuring Lil John and Ludacris. Google launched Gmail, and Mark Zuckerberg created Facebook in his Harvard dorm room. As for me, I was going to my high school formal with diamante butterfly clips in my hair, which was very of the time. And the general co-payment for PBS scripts was just $25. Well, we're taking you back to 2004, and for very good reason: because cheaper medicines isn't just good for your family budget; it's good for your health, too, and that means it's good for our health system.

During the election campaign Labor looked the Australian people in the eye and said we would focus on what matters to you, like lower costs and more-accessible health care. I heard from people up and down Queensland about how much this matters to them, how much they would save if they got their regular prescriptions for less, the difference it would make to their family budget and the peace of mind you get from knowing you can afford the medicines your family need. We promised cheaper medicines, and now we are delivering.

This bill will reduce the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme general co-payment from its current amount of $31.60 to $25, a saving of more than 20 per cent. And, under Labor, concession cardholders, like pensioners, will pay even less. We've frozen concessional co-payments at just $7.70 until the end of 2029. These measures build on the work the Albanese government and health minister Mark Butler did during the last term, when they slashed the cost of maximum co-payments down from $42.50. And we've introduced 60-day prescriptions for common medicines that are used on an ongoing basis, saving time and money for millions of Australians who have an ongoing health condition. That has saved those Australian patients around $250 million already and has allowed them to avoid more than 35 million unnecessary trips to the pharmacist.

Not everyone agreed with these measures, but Labor did them because they were the right thing to do. This bill builds on that work and it fits in that mould. From 1 January next year, millions of Australians will pay less for their PBS prescriptions than they will if this bill does not pass. That's why I urge all senators to support cheaper medicines. It's what the Australian people voted for, and it's what they deserve,

This fight is personal for me. As I said in my first speech, I grew up in a single-parent family who relied on bulk-billing doctors, on Australia's world-class health system and of course on an affordable PBS. We couldn't have survived without it. These are the things good Labor governments have delivered, and we're taking up the fight to protect those essential rights for all Australians. In fact, without Australia's universal health system, I probably wouldn't be standing in this chamber today. When I was just 16 years of age I was diagnosed with a serious autoimmune condition. It is a condition that would hospitalise me for a long time and threaten to rob me of my quality of life. I credit my doctor for giving me a new treatment that had just come out of clinical trials and was showing positive results for people with my condition. This treatment was costly, and my doctor had to write to the federal Department of Health to get approval to administer it to me. That drug saved my life as I knew it.

I carry with me every day a debt of gratitude for our public hospital system and our amazing doctors and nurses. If it wasn't for Australia's affordable medicines I wouldn't be standing in this chamber today. So I will spend every day I have in this chamber fighting for Medicare and fighting for medicines to remain affordable in Australia. Australians should know this is real, because right now in my home state of Queensland we are seeing the conservatives talking about privatising our hospitals—well, not on my watch!

The Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme is one of Labor's proudest achievements. Along with Medicare, it has become an essential part of who we are as Australians. That's why cheaper medicines are just one of the ways we're delivering on our promise. We're even opening more Medicare urgent care clinics and investing in Medicare mental health clinics, where you can go with no appointment, no referral and no payment needed. We've opened Medicare mental health clinics in Lutwyche, in Caloundra, in Caboolture, in Strathpine, and soon in Redcliff too. We're making the biggest ever investment in bulk-billing, so you can see a GP for free when you need to.

The Australian people voted for action on health care; now Labor is delivering it. I urge all senators to vote for cheaper medicines and this bill.

Fatima Payman (WA, Australia's Voice) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise in support of the National Health Amendment (Cheaper Medicines) Bill 2025. From 1 January 2026, the cost of buying PBS approved medicines will fall from $31.60 to $25. This is definitely a welcome change and a genuine relief for millions of Australians who rely on PBS every single day, but we must make one thing clear. Affordability is not just a nice policy; it is a matter of health and survival. Data from the ABS in 2023-2024, found that eight per cent of Australians delayed or did not get prescription medication when needed because of cost. For women and young people, those rates were higher at nine per cent and 12 per cent respectively. That is one in ten women and more than one in ten young Australians who are forced to go without treatment that doctors prescribed. That is why I'm heartened by the bipartisan support for the PBS, particularly as US pharmaceutical companies and President Trump threaten tariffs on Australian medicines. Tariffs are not in Australia's interests, and we must resist any push that would undermine the PBS. We do not want to go down the path of the American healthcare system, where as many as 550,000 people a year file for bankruptcy due to medical debt. For me, the PBS is non-negotiable.

For many Australians, the problem is not just the price of medicines but also whether they can access those medicines at all. According to the TGA's medicine shortage reports database, as many as 373 medicines were in shortage in August this year—diabetes treatment and medicines for menopause, rheumatic fever and breast cancer. These life-saving and life-changing drugs have been among those unavailable. When shortages occur, the minister can approve alternatives, but that often creates a rush on the substitutes and pushes the pressure down the line.

These shortages are not random; they stem from fragile supply chains. A study by the Institute for Integrated Economic Research found that Australia imports more than 90 per cent of its medicines. That is a vulnerability we cannot afford. The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners has proposed greater investment in domestic production to shore up supply. I support the call, and I urge the government to act. I foreshadow my second reading amendment, as circulated on sheet 3385, which deals with this very issue.

I also want to acknowledge the positive steps taken on 30-day and 60-day prescriptions. Since 2022, hundreds of medicines have been made eligible for 60-day scripts. This means fewer trips to the pharmacy and half the cost for many households. The final stage of this reform rolled out in September last year, adding another 100 medicines to the list. If there is scope to expand this program further, I strongly encourage the government to do so. However, we must also be clear-eyed about the challenges.

After speaking with local pharmacists in WA, I know that the government has been racing to the bottom on medicines prices without addressing systemic issues within the industry. Doctors are not always aware of which medicines are out of stock, so patients leave with prescriptions they cannot fill at pharmacies. They are then often forced to return to the doctor—often at extra out-of-pocket costs—just to find another treatment plan. If a cheaper generic is unavailable, patients are forced to pay surcharges for premium brands through no fault of their own. Pharmacies, meanwhile, have been stock-piling medicines to meet the demand from the 60-day scripts, which, in turn, worsens the shortages.

We also see absurdities in the system. Spren is available under the PBS for Closing the Gap customers, but no other brands of low-dose aspirin are covered. When Spren goes out of stock, patients are left stranded. Wholesale prices for some antibiotics can be just a couple of dollars, but, if dispensed as a private script, they cannot be counted towards the PBS safety net. Pharmacists also lack the authority to make sensible substitutions. For example, the medicine called Rosuzet—which is a combination of rosuvastatin and ezetimibe—is out of stock. Both medicines are sold separately under different brands, yet pharmacists must chase doctors for a new script before they can supply them separately. That wastes everyone's time. The Pharmacy Guild is right to push for reforms on this. Finally, let's consider Minipress, which is a drug for hypertension, enlarged prostates and Raynaud's disease. It has been in a long-term shortage since July. It is even a medicine eligible for 60-day scripts, meaning patients may face even greater stress if they cannot access it in time.

There is no question that this bill is a step in the right direction. Reducing the costs of medicines will make a real difference in everyday Australians' lives, but the cost is only one piece of the puzzle. Unless we address the systemic supply issues in our pharmaceutical system, Australians will continue to pay the price—either at the counter or in their health. I commend the bill to the Senate.

Wendy Askew (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I too rise today in support of the National Health Amendment (Cheaper Medicines) Bill 2025, which is a bill that delivers on a clear and urgent promise to make medicines more affordable for Australians. This bill reduces the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, the PBS, general co-payment from $31.60 to $25. This is a meaningful change that will ease the burden on families, pensioners and all Australians who are struggling to afford the medications they desperately need.

For many, this change is not simply a policy adjustment. It is a lifeline. In the past year alone, eight per cent of Australians delayed or went without their prescription medicine due to cost concerns. That's nearly one in 10 Australians being forced to choose between their health and their household budget. And, under Labor's watch, those choices are becoming more painful by the day. This bill honours the coalition's election commitment to guarantee cheaper medicines. We were the first to commit to lowering the PBS co-payment and we remain steadfast in our belief that no Australian should have to skip a script because they can't afford it.

This bill is part of a broader story—a story of a government that keeps promising to strengthen Medicare but, instead, has presided over its decline. Under the Albanese government, bulk-billing has plummeted. GP bulk-billing has fallen from 88 per cent to 77 per cent, and Australians are now paying 75 per cent more in out-of-pocket costs. In fact, 1.5 million Australians avoided seeing their GP last year because they simply couldn't afford it. The Prime Minister told Australians, 'All you need is your Medicare card, not your credit card.' He said that 71 times during the election campaign, but the facts tell a different story.

In May alone, Australians paid $166 million in out-of-pocket costs at the GP, and, while the Prime Minister waves around his Medicare card, Australians are waving goodbye to affordable health care. The coalition's record, however, stands in stark contrast. In government, we made 2,900 new or amended PBS listings, investing $16.5 billion to ensure Australians had access to life-saving treatments. We listed every medicine recommended by the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee. Labor, on the other hand, capped the number of medications considered for listing, which caused harmful delays.

We saw this again with Ryeqo, which is a treatment for endometriosis. It was recommended for PBS listing for over a year before Labor finally acted. Why should the hundreds of thousands of Australian women suffering from chronic pain every day accept this sort of unnecessary delay? And let's not forget mental health. The Albanese government has cut Medicare funding for mental health support in half, ignoring expert health advice and leaving vulnerable Australians behind. Access to Medicare mental health support is now at its lowest point in a decade.

The situation in Tasmania, my home state, is even more dire. According to the Cleanbill 2025 blue report, there are no clinics in Tasmania bulk-billing new adult patients. Tasmanians are now paying an average of $54 per GP visit—the highest in the country. This has forced more people into emergency departments for non-urgent care, increasing weight times and straining our health system. The Tasmanian government has had to step in with $40 million in primary care funding just to keep clinics open. That's money that should be coming from Canberra.

Australians deserve better. They deserve a government that acts, not one that reviews endlessly and delays progress. The health technology assessment review, for example, which was commissioned by the coalition, remains untouched. We know the challenges, we have the data and we've heard the voices of patients. Now is the time for actions. This bill is a step forward, a step toward restoring trust in our healthcare system and a step towards ensuring that Australians can access the medicines they need without having to choose between their health and their groceries.

Marielle Smith (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This bill, the National Health Amendment (Cheaper Medicines) Bill 2025, implements the Albanese Labor government's 2025 election commitment to reduce the PBS general patient co-payment from $31.60 to $25. Having already slashed the cost of medicines in 2023 through the largest cut to these costs in the history of the PBS, we are now going even further with $25 medicines. This is a more than 20 per cent cut in the maximum cost of PBS medicines that will save Australians over $200 million each year. Medicines haven't cost $25 in Australia since 2004—the same year Kath & Kim was at its peak, Jet was topping the charts and I was finishing high school.

This is an election commitment I am extremely proud of because we do not want a single Australian to go without the medicines they need because they cannot afford them. Four out of five PBS medicines will now become cheaper because of our investment. And this builds on the work we've already done like investing in an additional 18 million bulk-billed GP visits each year, expanding the bulk-billing incentive to all Australians and tripling the number of fully bulk-billed practices. We've implemented 60-day prescriptions, saving time and money for Australians with ongoing health conditions. We're ensuring Australians can access more free and cheaper medicines sooner with a 25 per cent reduction in the number of scripts that a concessional patient must fill before the safety net kicks in, and we're investing in Medicare urgent care clinics across the country—including one in my home community of Sturt. And, given it's Women's Health Week, I should mention that we are investing in more choice and better treatment in women's health through an investment of almost $800 million.

I am extremely proud of our record on health. Labor built Medicare and we will always fight to defend it and strengthen it. This bill implements our commitment for $25 medicines. It's good for the hip pocket of Australians and it's good for their health. Through this bill, we are delivering cheaper medicines and a stronger Medicare. I wholeheartedly commend the bill to the Senate.

Ellie Whiteaker (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I also rise to speak in support of the National Health Amendment (Cheaper Medicines) Bill 2025. This bill lowers the cost of PBS medicines for general patients to $25—the lowest it has been in more than 20 years. It will save households across the country more than $200 million every single year.

The Prime Minister said we would make medicines cheaper, and that is exactly what we are doing here today. Labor believes that no-one should have to choose between their health care and managing their budget. This is real cost-of-living relief and it is a demonstration of our real commitment to making health care more affordable. We know how essential medicines are to families, but too often they place too much pressure on them. Lowering the cost of medicines takes a little bit of that pressure off and makes it easier for people to stay on top of their health care and their finances. What might seem like a small saving on paper becomes a really meaningful saving in day-to-day life.

I am so proud that Labor is putting this bill to the Senate today. Labor created the PBS. We created Medicare. This bill shows that we are committed to those foundations and to making health care more affordable for all Australians.

Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the National Health Amendment (Cheaper Medicines) Bill, and I'm also proud to be part of the Anthony Albanese Labor government, who continue to deliver on our election commitments. The cost of prescriptions is a significant concern for many Australians, especially those who have challenges with the cost of living. Sixty-day scripts have made a lot of difference to people who have chronic illnesses. Cheaper medicines have helped put more money back in everyday Australian's pockets, and we know on this side of the chamber that we will always defend Medicare and invest.

It is fitting that we're debating this bill today, because, as co-chair of Parliamentary Friends of Arthritis, our breakfast was held in Parliament House this morning. These are people who live with chronic pain, so having cheaper medicines, which ensure that they don't have to make a choice between their groceries, paying their rent and getting their medication. Labor has always invested in their people. We will always support better access to more affordable medication so that we can manage those chronic illnesses. It also helps to prevent deterioration of your health. We know that there are challenges in the cost of living, so anything that can help, like reducing the cost of medications, has got to be a good thing.

At its heart Labor's cheaper medicines policy is about fairness, and it's about health equity. It doesn't matter where you live; you should still have access to affordable medication. By driving down the cost of prescription drugs at the pharmacy counter, Labor's approach directly addresses the growing concern that many people are being forced to skip doses, delay refilling scripts or avoiding seeking treatment all together due to financial constraints. I'm in this chamber on this side and I'm part of a government that is delivering an election commitment—bringing the cost of medication down. We're putting more medications on the PBS, delivering 60-day scripts, which those opposite when they were in government for 11 years buckled and did not have the fortitude to change. That is huge to people who have chronic illnesses.

Jana Stewart (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Today I rise in support of the National Health Amendment (Cheaper Medicines) Bill 2025. Labor has always been the party of health care, from Chifley's 1946 amendment enshrining health care in our Constitution to Whitlam's universal healthcare reforms and Hawke's Medicare. Now, under the Albanese Labor government, we continue that tradition with our cheaper medicines bill. We believe that every Australian should be able to afford the medicine they need without worrying about the cost. From 1 January 2026 no Australian will pay more than $25—or $7.70 with a concession card—for a general PBS script. That is a cut of more than 20 per cent, saving Australians over $200 million every single year.

We're already seeing the impact. As of 31 July this year, Victorians alone have saved more than $425 million across 69 million cheaper scripts. What does this mean on the ground? It means more money back in the pockets of everyday Australians. In the shires of Yarriambiack, Horsham and Ararat, where older people live with higher rates of chronic conditions, these savings absolutely matter. In Nicholls, where more people live with at least one chronic condition than the state or national average, these savings matter. For First Nations communities, where chronic disease rates are higher and access to care is harder, these savings matter.

This bill cuts the cost of medicines for people in rural Victoria and right across the nation. The Albanese Labor government isn't just reducing the costs of medicines; we're making the biggest investment in health care in a generation. We're making sure you can see a GP for free with the single largest investment in Medicare since it began over 40 years ago.

We are building 50 more Medicare urgent care clinics, on top of the 87 we opened last term. That means four in five Australians will live within a 20-minute drive of one of those clinics. And we know they work. Since June 2023, these clinics have already treated over 1.8 million people.

Twenty years later, Labor's taking the cost out again. This is what Labor governments do: we invest in universal health care, we make medicines cheaper, and we build Australia's future, because Labor has always been and will always be the party of health care.

Deborah O'Neill (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today to express my unwavering support for the reduction in the cost of PBS medications from $31.60 to $25. Picture this: you are someone who has been living with a chronic illness, whether that be hypertension or asthma; or maybe you're the parent of a child living with an illness that requires constant medication; or—this might ring true for many of us here today—you're supporting your parents or family members as they age and they require medicinal support to experience a good quality of life. You don't get a choice as to whether you buy the medication or not. It's not like a chronic condition is going to spontaneously disappear; nor will illnesses stop existing and negate the need for medication.

The cost-of-living crisis has placed far too many people in a position where they've had to choose between necessary medications or food on the table, both of which are crucial to living a good life. We've heard how the cost of medications has affected Australians—not just those who live with chronic illness, but everyone who utilises the PBS. We know this has affected you, because on 3 May there was an overwhelming vote in support of Labor's plans to fix this problem. We're not only aware of the impact that this has had on Australians; we're also enacting tangible change to alleviate the pressure that you're experiencing.

People who are affected by the increased cost of medications haven't just been struggling recently. They haven't been able to access a cost this low for their essential medications since 2004. We've reduced costs before, in 2023, but, having heard what Australians need, we're going further, to make sure Australians get the help that they need.

Fundamental to our values is making living easier for those who have it the hardest. Crucial to this reform is freezing the co-payment costs for concession-card holders and pensioners. This alleviates not only the real costs experienced month to month but also the stress experienced at the threat of rising inflation and increased cost-of-living expenses, ensuring no-one has to worry about choosing between two necessary costs. The eligibility criteria for the PBS safety net will expand, directly benefiting those who rely on this system the most, because no-one should be disadvantaged for conditions that they cannot control.

To have to choose to forgo medication expenses can affect a multitude of factors. People can't get to work or to school if they're in too much pain or they can't manage their symptoms without medication. How are people supposed to make money and alleviate cost-of-living pressures without being healthy enough to work? And what is the impact of that on small businesses when their staff are unable to attend because they simply can't afford their medication?

We in Labor have listened, and we've responded. This is a government that isn't just about powering through things. Even though we know how strong Australians are, they should haven't to just grin and bear it through a work day because essential medications were too expensive. They should feel comfortable, well and enabled. This cost reduction to PBS medications from $31.60 to $25—a 2004 rate—is a very significant contribution from the Labor government.

Jordon Steele-John (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

People in our community are struggling with the cost of living. Families are being forced to choose between putting food on the table and the medicines that they need. They don't need half measures; they need real relief. The Greens will support Labor's bill to bring the cost of PBS medicines down from $31.60 to $25, because we know that it is important. In fact, it is essential that the cost of these vital medicines is reduced. But our community are demanding that we must go further. More essential medicines need to be added to the PBS. More people need to be able to visit their GP for free, regardless of their postcode.

And dental care must be covered through Medicare. The mouth is part of the body, and yet it continues to be excluded from Medicare. For most, going to the dentist is now entirely unaffordable. Public dental waiting lists literally don't bear looking at. We have people who are stuck for years in pain—year after year after year. Then, in some of these systems, they get to the end of the waitlist to get their teeth treated—to get that the filling, to get the infection addressed in that one tooth—and then they have to go back to the back of the queue because they were only on the waitlist for the one tooth. If anything else is wrong, well then that's back to the start again for them. That is a completely broken and unfair system.

These failures and barriers compound already existing health issues. Older Australians are being hit hard. On average, people over 65 have lost 14 teeth, and one in four avoids certain foods because of dental issues. Fifty-five per cent have delayed treatment due to cost. The royal commission into aged-care services and the Senate inquiry into dental care services and provision in Australia both spoke with one voice, recommending to the parliament and to the government the establishment of a seniors dental benefit scheme so that those over 65 can get access to basic dental care and basic denture provision. Surely we owe it to our older Australians to get this done. Surely both sides of parliament can come together with the Greens and reach down and reclaim this policy reform from the too-hard basket that it was chucked in all those years ago. There is often little that this parliament can agree on, but surely we can agree that older Australians shouldn't be living in unnecessary dental pain. Surely we can come together on that topic. Yet, at this moment, from this government—nothing.

Medicine saves lives. That's the pure and simple fact of the matter. Medicine saves lives. Health care saves lives.

The Greens have put together an amendment to establish a seniors dental benefit scheme. This government, in the last sitting of parliament, responded by shooting that amendment down, confirming once again that they have prioritised the handouts that they give to polluters and landlords, as well as the public funds that they've decided to splash around on nuclear submarines and handouts to fossil fuel companies, over providing essential dental care. This is not the first time they have put polluters, landlords and the already rich and powerful ahead of the community. They have done it so many times, time after time, in my eight years here. It is not good enough. It is why people look to parliament and feel anger and frustration.

Every single year, seeing the GP is becoming less affordable. We know that fewer GPs are bulk-billing than ever before. The latest data tells us that the average out-of-pocket cost for an Australian to visit the GP remains over $40. In Tasmania and the ACT, it's over $50 a visit. People are skipping check-ups, delaying tests or prioritising their kids' health over their own health because of the cost.

At the election, the Greens put forward a plan to make GP visits free for everyone covered by Medicare, to triple the bulk-billing incentive, to increase rebates for longer appointments and to establish 1,000 free local healthcare clinics where GPs, psychologists and dentists can work together to provide care. The government has adopted part of this plan, but the policy changes that they now have put forward don't go far enough to solve the problem. It is not good enough to sit there and say: 'Oh well. Our policy is better than what the Liberals would have coughed up.'

That is cold comfort to somebody trying to figure out whether to buy food or see the doctor, whether to pay rent or buy their medicines. They cannot pay for the health care they need by using the sum total of your self-satisfaction about being better than a party that opposed Medicare in the beginning and that, if left to its own devices, would tear it to shreds. There has to be a raising of the bar in this place above, 'Is it better than what the LNP can scrape together as a policy idea?' We are never going to get people the urgent care and support that they need if those opposite are the benchmark. Come on!

The RACGP has found that 66 per cent of GPs won't be bulk-billing or increasing their bulk-billing rates despite this government's changes to bulk-billing incentives. People with chronic illness, women and disabled people typically rely on longer appointments. We need the rebate system to reflect this, including an increase of the rebate for appointments over 20 minutes. Nobody should have to try to cram their complex experience of a chronic health condition into such a short a bit of time, and no GP should be forced to make the decision as to whether they will listen to their patient or try to cut the appointment short because, after a certain point, a practitioner is losing money because they cannot claim a high enough rebate for the time that they are using on that patient.

The health technology assessment review has made it clear that we need to and in fact can speed up the process of approvals and access to the PBS, especially for the groups that need it most, like children and First Nations communities. That final report was released in September. Since then, there has been no action. The Greens' plan goes further. We would see all PBS medicines free for concession card holders and just $7.70 for everyone else. Labor could make these changes right now, ensuring better access to the necessary medicines that people need. You could make sure that the cost never gets in the way of people getting the medicine that they need. Why haven't you? Why have you not done this with the power now invested in you?

The Greens will support this bill because people desperately need cost-of-living relief right now. But let me be clear: these half-measures are not solutions. If Labor were serious, they would deliver real relief, like cheaper medicines, and make GP bulk-billing a reality again for people. If Labor were serious, we would be talking right now about getting dental care into Medicare and finally removing the ridiculous caps that prevent people from getting the mental health care that they need. That's what we'd be talking about. If you were serious, that's what would be on the agenda. The Greens are serious. I sit here, serious to my bones about this.

There may not be a consensus in this place for every aspect of the Greens policies and plans for health care, but come on now. We have to begin actual work in this space. People are living in pain every day, being exposed to additional healthcare conditions every day and struggling every day either because between them and the health care they need is a health and cost barrier they cannot cross or because, for decades, this parliament under Labor and Liberal governments has collectively decided that it's okay that our Medicare system, loved by the community, doesn't recognise that the mouth is part of the body and doesn't recognise that mental health care is health care and should be covered as health care. Those are the basic realities, those are the basic recognitions that are needed, and that's what it would look like if this government were serious in this space.

We will continue to be serious and work with people of goodwill across this chamber who are serious, who may have different views to ours, with a shared agreement that we must get to work. I urge the government to join us in that work, because it is the work, the task and the priority that the Australian community actually needs of this place at this time. Thank you.

Matt O'Sullivan (WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Ananda-Rajah.

Michelle Ananda-Rajah (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you—

Jordon Steele-John (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I would like to move an amendment, standing in my name, that has been circulated in the chamber. I just need to flag that for procedural reasons.

Matt O'Sullivan (WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Sure. We'll come to you at the appropriate time.

Jenny McAllister (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I have not seen this amendment circulated, so Senator Steele-John may wish to check that this has occurred.

Jordon Steele-John (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'll make sure that we have done that. Thank you.

Matt O'Sullivan (WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you for that clarification and for helping the chamber in that regard. Senator Ananda-Raja, back to you.

Michelle Ananda-Rajah (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As a former practising doctor, I welcome any reform that lowers the cost of medicine. We as a Labor government have been, from the get-go, delivering this for the Australian people over the course of two terms now. Since we were first elected we've seen consecutive reductions in the cost of medicines. They were originally around $42. We lowered them to $32 per general script, and from 1 January next year it will fall again to $25 a script. The last time medicines were $25 a script was in 2004. Do you know what else was big in 2004? Shannon Noll exploded onto the scene with his hit, 'What About Me?' Ian Thorpe cemented his greatness at the Athens Olympics, winning more gold medals, and Facebook was founded in 2004. Maybe that was not so great. What is great is seeing the cost of general medicines drop. Why is it important? From a medical standpoint it's important because I've seen patients ration their medicines. That means that either they cut them in half or take them every second day. In other words, they're trying to make them stretch. That has consequences. It leads to avoidable emergency department presentations with a whole list of ailments.

When you think about it, nine out of 10 Australians have chronic diseases. Millions and millions of Australians take medicines on a regular basis. The average family that has, say, four regular scripts, will save around $300 a year. That's $300 more to spend on other items like clothing for the kids, paying rent, buying something special or going out and having a nice time at a restaurant. I welcome these changes, I'm particularly excited about the impact that this will have on emergency department presentations, which I think will be very interesting to monitor going forward.

This reform builds on a whole suite of changes that we have brought in for medicines. I particularly like 60-day scripts, which now include nearly 300 medicines on the PBS. That means you can go and see your doctor and ask your doctor to give you a 60-day script instead of a 30-day script. Again, it means saving more money, as well as convenience, so that you don't have to keep turning up to receive that script each time.

This reform of course builds upon one of Labor's proudest legacies and public achievements, and that is the founding of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. That was a Chifley government legacy in 1948, and this bill takes the principle of access to essential medicines forward again. I thank you.

Jenny McAllister (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Labor government is committed to strengthening Medicare and to delivering cheaper medicines. The Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme provides timely, reliable and affordable access to necessary for medicines for all Australians, and it has no better friend than the Albanese government. We are supporting all Australians with cost-of-living relief, and this bill is one of the many ways we are providing more-affordable medicines to Australians. General patients will save more than $200 million each year.

The contributions that have been made here today and in the other place tell us so much about why this is important. We've heard, firsthand, accounts of the sacrifices too many Australians make—sacrificing their health by spacing out prescriptions or cutting doses to make them last longer. But, thanks to Labor's plan, the maximum amount a general patient will pay will be $25 per prescription from 1 January, plus any applicable premiums. It provides immediate cost-of-living relief to patients without a concession card while also ensuring that the PBS remains a sustainable investment for government that doesn't come at the expense of priorities like listing new medicines, like investment in other essential health services such as bulk-billing, and like a competitive and sustainable pharmaceutical market. This bill delivers on a significant commitment made prior to the election. It builds on earlier actions undertaken by the Albanese government to deliver cheaper medicines, and it helps strengthen Medicare and improve the health of all Australians.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that the second reading amendment as moved by Senator Ruston be agreed to.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I advise there are a couple more second reading amendments. I call Senator Payne to move hers.

Fatima Payman (WA, Australia's Voice) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move my second reading amendment as circulated on sheet 3385:

At the end of the motion, add ", but the Senate:

(a) notes that:

(i) in August 2025 over 300 medicines were in shortage in Australia,

(ii) alternatives approved during shortages are often sold out very quickly, and

(iii) lowering the cost of medicine does nothing if there is no medicine for Australians to buy; and

(b) calls on the Government to ensure that the supply of medicine is able to meet Australia's needs".

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that the second reading amendment as moved by Senator Payman be agreed to.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is one more second reading amendment. I call Senator Steele-John. I understand it has been circulated in the chamber, Senator Steele-John.

Jordon Steele-John (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Yes, it has been circulated. I move the second reading amendment standing in my name:

At the end of the motion, add ", but the Senate:

(a) notes that:

(i) Australians are experiencing a cost-of-living crisis,

(ii) 3 in 10 people delay or avoid seeing the dentist due to cost,

(iii) in 2022-23 there were more than 87,000 potentially preventable hospitalisations due to dental conditions; and

(b) calls on the Government to recognise that the mouth is part of the body and to bring dental healthcare fully into Medicare, starting with an immediate commitment to fund and implement a Senior Dental Benefits Scheme".

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The question is that the second reading amendment as moved by Senator Steele-John be agreed to.