$621m for new PBS listings
December 16, 2015
THE government has allocated
an additional $621 million over
the next four years for new and
amended Pharmaceutical Benefits
Scheme listings, according to the
Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal
Outlook (MYEFO) released by
treasurer Scott Morrison yesterday.
However on the revenue side,
the government is also expecting
to save $549 million due to “higher
than expected savings from existing
pricing policies” under the PBS.
New listings introduced since the
May budget include medications
for the treatment of schizophrenia,
chronic gout, metastatic stomach or
gastric cancer, Crohn’s disease and
myeloid leukaemia.
Other parts of the health budget
impacted by the MYEFO include the
removal of bulk-billing incentives
for pathology and diagnostic
imaging services, with health
minister Sussan Ley saying she
doesn’t expect the majority of
consumers to be affected due to
the “high level of competition in
the sector”.
Other savings will be achieved by
reduced funding to some health
workforce programs which Ley said
had “not been well targeted”.
However new funds will be
provided to boost the investment
in multidisciplinary health training
delivered by institutions that
already operate a University
Department of Rural Health.
The above article was sent to subscribers in Pharmacy Daily's issue from 16 Dec 15To see the full newsletter, see the embedded issue below or CLICK HERE to download Pharmacy Daily from 16 Dec 15
