Barnaby Joyce (New England, National Party, Shadow Minister for Veterans' Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I want to commend the National Health Amendment (Technical Changes to Averaging Price Disclosure Threshold and Other Matters) Bill 2024. I also note that at 7.30 tonight, with the security issue happening and the evacuation of the building, I bet you there'll be more people on the streets of Adavale spinning plates than there will be in this place by the time they call that evacuation.

The National Health Amendment (Technical Changes to Averaging Price Disclosure Threshold and Other Matters) Bill 2024 clarifies the operation of the National Health Amendment (Enhancing the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme) Bill 2021. The 2021 amendment provides improved pricing arrangements and more reliable supply for older and low-cost medicines that can be more susceptible to medicine shortages. This is related to the minimum stockholding requirements, which require companies to hold a minimum of either four or six months of stock for certain PBS medicines referred to as 'designated brands'. As part of this measure, the Australian government has supported the investment by the medicines industry in managing the supply-chain risk through the MSRs through one-off price increases, to improve the viability of low-cost medicines. In addition, designated brands are protected from price disclosure reductions through thresholds, which ensure that price reductions occur only when there is significant discounting in the market or where there is a sustained discounting over a period of time.

The bill before us today clarifies the operation of the act, which relates to 'designated brands' subject to the price disclosure thresholds. The bill includes only technical amendments which are intended for the avoidance of doubt and do not alter the operation of existing provisions, which have been in effect since 1 July 2022. While the federal court dismissed the case, these amendments address the potential risk that the timing of a price disclosure reduction could be invalid. The coalition will support this bill because it clarifies the provisions of the 2021 amendment act, which was brought in under the former coalition government and formed part of the important strategic agreements we made with the pharmaceutical industry.

Whilst we support this bill, we are disappointed by the Albanese government's lack of action on the health technology assessment review, which also formed part of our strategic agreement with Medicines Australia. This review is grounded in the belief that, whilst we need affordable medicines and treatments available here in Australia, we also need to ensure timely access as new developments become available.

That balance between affordability and timely access is critical for those patients who do not have time to wait. The government was supposed to release the final report of the HTA review at the end of last year, but it has now been sitting on the minister's desk for over two months. The coalition understands that there is significant interest across the sector and from patients to see outcomes result from this important review. It is beyond time that this report was released publicly and followed by an adequate government response.

Australia's HTA system must be evolved to keep pace with advancements in medical technologies seen across the globe. We know that patients' lives depend on it. It has also become clear that we are falling behind the rest of the world, where other countries are able to make approvals at greater speed than we currently do here. Australia's current HTA processes were not designed with the current technological advancements in mind. They need to be updated for the modern realities of health care. We need to evolve our systems to keep pace with the rapid evolution of technology so critical for the care of Australian patients. Addressing this issue would have wide-flowing benefits for patients, their families and the entire healthcare system.

This is critical right now, as Australia's healthcare system faces significant pressures at every point. Our hospitals are overrun. Ambulance ramping is at record highs in states across the country. Primary care is at crisis point, with Australians facing record challenges in getting access to affordable GP appointments. It has literally never been harder or more expensive to see a doctor. In many regional hospitals, there is not even a doctor. If the nurse breaks her arm, she has to go to another hospital because there's no doctor in the hospital. In other areas, such as Muswellbrook, there are no obstetrics—a major town, with no obstetrics—so people have to go to Tamworth or Maitland if ladies wish to have a baby.

Also, workforce shortages are impacting almost every area of the system, whilst the government refuses to take action. There needs to be real action to ensure that all Australian patients have access to the care they need, when they need it, where they need it—including by addressing the challenges with affordable and timely access to new medicines and treatments. This should make the HTA review an urgent priority for the government.

This bill also reflects the importance of stockholding requirements, as shown by the recent severe medicine shortages that have been occurring under the Albanese government's watch. The recent shortage of saline IV fluids in Australia has posed a serious risk to the operations of our healthcare system. Saline IV bags are absolutely critical to the emergency health care provided to patients in Australian hospitals, but doctors in every hospital around our nation were told to ration the amounts being used for their patients. This cannot go on.

When asked about this issue in question time last month, Minister Gallagher admitted that the Albanese government had been aware of the impending shortage since May 2023. They appeared to do nothing about it. It was shocking to hear the minister confirm that the government had known about the impending shortage for more than a year and had failed to take action. The Albanese government refused to show leadership on this national shortage and instead lied, deflected and refused to take responsibility—something they've become quite apt at doing lately.

Overseas drug regulators, including the FDA, the European Medicines Agency and the New Zealand Pharmac, have confirmed that they have minimal to no issues with their national supplies. The government had more than 12 months notice of an impending shortage, and no other country around the world has experienced supply issues on the same scale as Australia. This was clearly a crisis of the government's own making. It's emblematic of them creating their own disturbance, whether it's to the economy, to medicines or to health, and it demonstrates the importance of ensuring we have effective measures in Australia to safeguard Australians' access to essential medicines.

Once again, the opposition will support this bill, which forms part of the important strategic agreement that the coalition achieved with Australia's medicines industry, for the benefit of patients across Australia. I commend this bill to the House.

Debate adjourned.