Peter Slipper (Fisher, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I would like to commend the honourable member for Parramatta for raising this motion in the House. We are fortunate in this country to have a Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme which really is world first-class. What the government must always do is make sure that the scheme remains affordable so that—unlike in schemes in other countries, including New Zealand—important lifesaving drugs are able to be included on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.

We cannot have a situation whereby anyone can get any drug listed on the scheme at whim, because many of these drugs are inordinately expensive and sometimes the benefits of these drugs are not always easily and quickly proven. We therefore have what many would describe as a very appropriate and accountable system for listing medicines on the PBS. The Australian government relies on the advice of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee. This is an independent expert committee.

I have read about the prognosis for sufferers of mesothelioma and, as the honourable member who spoke before me mentioned, it is not good. It does seem as though Alimta provides additional quality of life as well as an extension of life. The honourable member mentioned in her speech that, while the extension of time of life may not be substantial, the quality of life is substantially improved. I am not a medical person and I am not really in a position to know whether that is in fact the case, but I am happy to accept what the honourable member says she believes and I am happy to take it at face value.

I understand that a prior application was made for the use of Alimta on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme to fight mesothelioma and that that was unsuccessful because the committee considered that it was not adequately proven that the benefits that would flow from listing it as well as the improvement in health outcomes warranted the cost. My understanding is that there has now been a new submission made for Alimta to actually be listed for the treatment of malignant pleural mesothelioma in combination with Cisplatin and that the November 2007 meeting of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee will consider that further application.

My experience of the way this committee operates is that it does look at all of the points put before it and it does try to come up with a rational and appropriate response. That does not mean that on every occasion the committee does get it right, but we simply could not substitute the current system with a system whereby whatever drug was desired to go on the PBS would or would not go on depending on the degree of pressure that was placed on the health minister at the time. Drugs have to be listed in accordance with their medical benefits and in accordance with the advantages, provided that the drugs are provided by companies at a reasonable cost. This is what the committee must take into account when determining whether or not to recommend the listing of a particular medicine.

Speaking personally, given all the material that I have read, I am strongly supportive of the listing of this drug on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. But I do make that statement with the caveat that I am not a medical person and I am not medically competent to make that decision. The written evidence that has passed before me indicates that this drug would indeed improve the quality of life of sufferers of mesothelioma as well as improve the length of life that sufferers of this disease actually have. So in that sense I feel well disposed towards the principle of listing it and I hope that when the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee considers this matter again in a couple of months time it will be able to look very closely at the case being put forward by the company—and I hope that the case is compelling and cogent—and as a result decide Alimta will be able to be listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme for mesothelioma sufferers. Having said that, I am really proud that this government has endeavoured to make sure that our Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme remains viable and— (Time expired)

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