Keeping Australians informed about the PBS
3 August 2003
The Federal Government has launched a major national advertising campaign to inform Australians about the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS).
The campaign is comprised of a series of television advertisements to inform Australians about the importance of the PBS and the need for everyone to use it responsibly to ensure more medicines can be added to the scheme in the future.
Senator Patterson, the Minister for Health and Ageing, said Australians needed to use the PBS responsibly to ensure the scheme remains sustainable.
‘I think it is very important that we understand that if we stockpile medicines and they pass their use-by-date we may never use them and by doing so we are reducing the likelihood that more medicines can be added to the scheme,’ she said.
The campaign will outline simple ways people can help sustain the scheme through more responsible use of medicines and by adopting a healthier lifestyle.
The campaign will air on all television stations across Australia over the next 13 weeks and features well known media doctor Dr James Wright as its spokesman.
A campaign booklet detailing information about the PBS will be available at doctors' surgeries and pharmacies.
In addition, from 1 August 2003, where there is a PBS subsidy, the medicine labels will now show both the amount the consumer has paid, and the real cost of the medicine.
The measure aims to help Australians to understand how much taxpayers contribute towards the cost of PBS medications.
‘It works out that for every dollar that we [consumers] pay for PBS-subsidised medicines, the taxpayer [via the Federal Government health budget] pays about 5 dollars,’ said Senator Patterson.
‘Labelling PBS medications is important so that all Australians understand that the PBS is designed to make medications on the PBS more affordable; whether you’re a concession card holder or not, all of us have our PBS medication subsidised irrespective of our income,’ Senator Patterson said.
The PBS currently costs almost 5 billion dollars a year, up from 1 billion dollars in 1991. The cost of the PBS alone has risen over 60 per cent in the last 4 years.
‘As medicines become more and more expensive, we need to ensure that we all use them wisely and appropriately, so that we can continue to subsidise medications in coming years,’ Senator Patterson said.
Last Reviewed: 04 August 2003
