Judi Moylan (Pearce, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Health and Ageing. Would the minister please advise the House of steps the government is taking to protect women from cervical cancer and how this will assist Australian women, particularly women in my electorate of Pearce?

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Pearce for her question and I appreciate how concerned she is and, indeed, all women in this House are about this issue. I am very pleased to inform her and the House that the government has decided to place the cervical cancer vaccine on the National Immunisation Program at a cost of some $436 million over four years. This is great news for the women of Australia. It is another win for the women of Australia delivered to them by the Howard government. Each year cervical cancer kills about 270 Australian women. Mortality rates have reduced by over 50 per cent over the past two decades. But there is now a chance to do more, thanks to the Gardasil vaccine developed by the Australian of the Year, Professor Ian Fraser. The vaccine prevents the virus that causes about 70 per cent of cervical cancer cases. From April next year, Gardasil will be on the National Immunisation Program on an ongoing basis for 12- to 13-year-old girls. For two years there will be a school based catch-up program for girls aged up to 18, and a GP based program for women aged up to 26.

There are two important points I should make. Firstly, vaccinated women will still need regular pap smears, because this vaccine will not prevent all forms of cervical cancer. Secondly, the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee expedited its reconsideration because of the logistics of a mainly school based roll-out but it otherwise applied standard cost-effectiveness criteria to its recommendation. I want to congratulate the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee for its guardianship of Australia’s drug and vaccine system. I would also like to thank senior officials of my department, particularly the Secretary, Jane Halton, and the First Assistant Secretary, Rosemary Huxtable, for securing good value for taxpayers as well as a very good deal for the women of Australia.