Sussan Ley (Farrer, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Women) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the National Health Amendment (Effect of Prosecution—Approved Pharmacist Corporations) Bill 2023. The opposition will be supporting this bill as it provides greater protection for the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme from fraud and abuse. We have always been strong supporters of the access to affordable medicines that the PBS provides to Australian households, and we know that ensuring continued and improved access to affordable medicines is now more important than ever, with the cost of living continuing to put significant and rising pressure on Australians.

The bill amends the National Health Act 1953 to support the sustainability and operation of the PBS. This bill extends the discretionary power of the secretary and the Minister for Health and Aged Care to suspend or revoke an approval for a pharmacist to supply pharmaceutical benefits at a particular premises, irrespective of whether the approval is held by an individual or under a company structure, where they have been charged with a PBS related offence.

By way of background, where a pharmacist has been approved to supply pharmaceutical benefits at a particular premises, the approved pharmacist can then make claims for payment from the Commonwealth in relation to the supply of pharmaceutical benefits. An approval to supply pharmaceutical benefits can be held by a pharmacist as an individual or a body corporate. However, the power to suspend or revoke an approval currently only applies to an approved pharmacist who is an individual. If a pharmacist operates under a company structure and they are charged with a PBS related offence, there is no ability for their approval to be suspended or revoked. This means, for example, that if the director of an approved pharmacist corporation is charged with a PBS related offence they can continue to receive payments from the Commonwealth despite being charged for fraudulently claiming payments.

We understand the importance of the change contained in this bill, which will help ensure the sustainability of the PBS by strengthening the compliance powers and ensuring that they apply equally to all types of approved pharmacists. This will better protect the PBS from further fraud and provide greater deterrence for those who seek to abuse this scheme.

The coalition has always been a strong supporter of the PBS, which ensures Australians have affordable access to critical medicines, and we will support this bill to protect the sustainability and integrity of this important scheme. The coalition remains absolutely committed to supporting Australians to have access to affordable medicines when they need them, and we're proud of our strong track record in providing Australians with timely and affordable access to effective medicines, cancer treatments and services. When we were in government, the coalition listed almost 3,000 new and amended medicines on the PBS, representing an average of around 30 listings a month. But we know that when Labor were last in government they had to stop listing medicines on the PBS because they couldn't manage money. The government has stated that the measures contained in this bill support the integrity of public funds to ensure these can be invested in access to new and improved medicines, and we will hold them to account on this. It's vital that they continue our strong record on investing in improved access to affordable medicines for all Australians.

However, we already have concerns that the Albanese Labor government is not prioritising investments in improved access to potentially life-saving or life-changing treatments, particularly following their decision to remove an innovative diabetes medicine, Fiasp, from the PBS. Fifteen thousand families have had the rug pulled out from under them by the Labor government's decision to remove this life-changing diabetes insulin from the PBS, which will send the price soaring. The former coalition ensured that diabetes patients have affordable access to Fiasp by listing this fast-acting insulin on the PBS in 2019. We understood that Fiasp is an innovative mealtime insulin that improves blood sugar control at a faster rate than other diabetes medications, resulting in an improved quality of life for patients.

We note Minister Butler's bandaid announcement to ensure diabetes patients have access to Fiasp for an additional six months if they're able to secure a script in time to cover them, by 1 April, but he must be transparent with Australian diabetes patients and admit whether he has actually considered all possible steps to support Fiasp remaining permanently on the PBS. We know Minister Butler has the power to come to a solution with the manufacturer, and it appears he has chosen not to.

The government needs to understand that this callous decision will tear away at the quality of life that this medicine affords over 15,000 people and their families across Australia. Labor went to the election with a promise to ensure cheaper medicines for all Australians, but this decision means they've already broken that promise. For all their moral posturing and their promises, Labor show time and time again that their rhetoric in opposition is not matched by their actions in government, and it's costing Australian lives and livelihoods.

This decision to break their promise on affordable medicines comes on top of a growing list of broken promises from this government. Labor promised on 97 separate occasions that Australian electricity prices would drop by $275, but instead they have delivered the most expensive average wholesale electricity prices on record. Labor said they wouldn't make any changes to superannuation, but one in 10 Australians will be affected by the changes that they have now announced, and it's clear that this is just the groundwork for more taxes and changes to come. Labor promised to strengthen Medicare, but so far they've only weakened it. They've slashed Medicare mental health support in half, they've cut 70 telehealth items from Medicare, and bulk-billing rates have plummeted after being at their highest levels when the coalition was in government. Labor said they'd make it easier to see a GP, but they've ripped GPs out of rural, regional, and remote Australia by changing the distribution priority areas. Labor promised cost-of-living relief, but the reality is life is only getting harder for Australians. Right now, to borrow a phrase from those opposite, everything is going up except for wages. Australians with a mortgage now buckle under the pressure of a 10th consecutive interest rate rise, which means a person with a typical mortgage of $750,000 is now paying $1,700 more a month than they were when rates started rising in May. Electricity prices are continuing to spiral out of control, with new increases of up to 23.7 per cent for households and 25.7 per cent for small businesses now announced. More than 100,000 small businesses will also be impacted by increased bills of up to $1,151 a year. It is these rising cost-of-living pressures on Australians that make access to affordable medicines so critical right now.

Once again, the coalition does support this bill to support the sustainability and operation of the PBS, which provides Australians with affordable access to potentially life-changing and life-saving medicines. However, we will continue to hold the Albanese government to account on investing in and maintaining continued and improved access to affordable medicines, particularly in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis. I thank the House.

Debate adjourned.