Susan Templeman (Macquarie, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Health and Aged Care. How is the Albanese Labor government making life-changing treatments more affordable for Australians living with type 1 diabetes?

Mark Butler (Hindmarsh, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Health and Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Macquarie for her question, because I know how hard she campaigned at the last election on Labor's platform of strengthening Medicare and cheaper medicines. We are delivering on the promises that she made to her communities across the Blue Mountains and through the Hawkesbury. In July the maximum yearly medicine bills for millions of pensioners and concession card holders was slashed by 25 per cent. In September we slashed the price of more than 2,000 brands of medicines, delivering about $130 million back into the pockets of hard-working Australians. On 1 January we will deliver the biggest cuts to the price of medicines in the 75-year history of the PBS.

We are also delivering cheaper prices for the 130,000 Australians living with type 1 diabetes. In July we delivered on our promise to slash the price of constant glucose monitoring devices to just $32 per month for adults. Until we acted, young Australians with type 1 diabetes were effectively handed a bill on their 21st birthday of thousands and thousands of dollars to continue using these life-changing devices in adulthood. Last weekend the members for Spence, Adelaide, Boothby and I joined the type 1 diabetes community in Adelaide to announce that the Albanese government will from next week slash the price of the next generation of insulin pumps, the Omnipod. This cordless technology allows kids in particular to play sport, go swimming, muck around in the playground with freedom and security, but the price tag of more than $400 per month for this technology has put it out of reach for most families. From next week the device will be available free of charge under insurance for the first time, and pods will cost less than $30 per box.

Four-year-old Georgie from the member for Spence's electorate joined us last week. Her parents told us 'the Omnipod has made a world of difference to her, with the comfort of her insulin device not moving around and no cannula cords to contend with.' One mother at the event said her daughter's trial period on the Omnipod was life-changing but they couldn't afford it after the trial ended. Another mum said that the huge cost of the pods meant they had to put them aside for special occasions like sports days and swimming carnivals. Support for this life-changing next-generation technology at an affordable price has been in the too-hard basket for far too long. Next week that will change.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I ask that further questions be placed on the Notice Paper.