PBS co-payment increase
May 14, 2014
THE Federal Government has
released the 2014-15 budget
in which it has announced the
establishment of a $20b Medical
Research Future Fund (PD breaking
news yesterday) and increased
Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme
(PBS) medicines co-payments.
Treasurer Joe Hockey presented
the budget last night following the
Commission of Audit report (PD
02 May); not many of the report’s
recommendations appear to have
been adopted, bar the increased
co-payments.
The government said it would
achieve savings of $1.3b over four
years from 01 Jan next year by
increasing these co-payments by
$5 to $42.70 for general patients
and by $0.80 to $6.90 in 2015 for
concessional patients.
Safety net thresholds would also
increase each year for four years
from 01 Jan next year, with general
safety net thresholds to increase
by 10% and concessional safety
nets to increase by the cost of two
prescriptions each year.
These savings would be invested
in the Future Fund.
The budget also outlined $2.1m
over two years to the Pharmacy
Guild of Australia for the Guild’s
administration of the payments
for programs under the Fifth
Community Pharmacy Agreement.
$16.5m would be provided over
five years to “reduce red tape” by
enabling paperless claiming for
PBS medicines dispensed from
medication charts in hospitals,
a measure which would also
increase patient safety by reducing
dispensing error risk during
transcription from charts, it said.
A major announcement was the
establishment of the research
fund in 01 Jan 2015, which was
projected to grow to $20b by 2019-
20 through all health savings in
the budget plus the uncommitted
balance of the Health and Hospitals
Fund.
It would be spent on further
medical research in the medium to
long term.
The budget also confirmed $7
patient contributions for GP visits,
out of hospital pathology and
diagnostic imaging services which
it said would save $3.5b over five
years.
To read the budget, CLICK HERE.
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