Australian PBS listing for new drugs

Medicines Australia, the trade association representing research-based drugmakers in Australia, has welcomed the decision by the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme to add new drugs to its reimbursement list.

Kieran Schneemann, Medicines Australia's chief executive, said: "this is an outstanding result for the thousands of patients that suffer the severe and debilitating conditions of osteoporosis, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and hepatitis B that these new medicines treat."

Mr Scheemann added that, because of savings to the PBS over coming years generated by patent expiries on the most commonly-prescribed treatments, public spending on drugs was slowing down. Government figures show that previous estimates have been reduced by A$426.0 million ($311.1 million) for 2005-06 and A$263.0 million in 2006-07. He said: "the PBS is now growing much less than the cost of Medicare, public hospitals and the Private Health Insurance Rebate," adding that the growth rate for the 2005-06 fiscal year is lower than the inflation rate.