Melissa McIntosh (Lindsay, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

A growing number of young people have been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes due to contracting COVID. The research is showing that COVID does have an impact on the whole of the immune system. My son Byron, who is 19, is one of these people. We've been dealing with this over the last six months or so and managing his type 1 diabetes, and I'm really proud of him and all these thousands of young people in our country, who continue as normally as possible with their lives.

Like the 15,000 Australians who use Fiasp, I was quite surprised to find out through the media the other day that Fiasp is being removed from the PBS. Fiasp is a fast-acting insulin. It's the only one of its kind on the PBS. It means people with type 1 diabetes can use this insulin and then eat pretty much straight away. They can do sport like every other kid, and, if their blood sugar levels go too high, they can inject a bit of insulin and keep going on with their sport rather than having to sit on the sideline. This really does change lives. It changes the lives of 15,000 families across our country.

That's why I was saying it's a real surprise that the government is removing Fiasp from the PBS. It is quite upsetting, because all these families will now have to pay thousands of dollars more if they want to obtain Fiasp. In addition to that, if you're privately funded, you may not be able to actually obtain it—there will be restrictions in place. This means ordinary, everyday Australians, who are already struggling with cost-of-living pressures, who want to have a normal life for their kids and want them to achieve their best, will now have to pay thousands more.

The question is, to the Prime Minister and to the health minister: what sort of negotiations have you been having with Novo Nordisk to ensure that you're fighting for all these Australians, all these young people, to make sure they don't remove it from the PBS? I know the Prime Minister was asked a question about this, and he said, 'Our health minister will look at that as we do.' I'm sure that the government has known about this for some time. What have you been doing? Please be transparent with the Australian people. Please be transparent with the 15,000 families who rely on Fiasp for their children's lives. This is a life-saving drug. Insulin is absolutely essential, and this particular insulin, Fiasp, changes the lives of young people who want to have a normal life like everyone else.