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	The Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme - an Overview
		Pharmaceuticals on the PBS are listed in the Schedule of Pharmaceutical Benefits for Approved Pharmacists and Medical Practitioners (also known as the Schedule for Pharmaceutical Benefits).
		The main components of the scheme were a combination of the existing pensioner and general schemes, an expanded range of drugs for the general public, and the introduction of a patient contribution (or co-payment) of 5 shillings to provide some control on volumes and expenditure.
		Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee is an independent statutory body established under section 101 of the National Health Act 1953 to make recommendations and give advice to the Minister about which drugs and medicinal preparations should be made available as pharmaceutical benefits.
	www.aph.gov.au /library/intguide/SP/pbs.htm (2847 words)

	Queensland Nurses Union - Changes to PBS
		The Australian Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) was established 51 years ago to assist with ensuring the affordability of various drugs.
		Recent changes by the federal government to the PBS and in particular the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee which oversees the Scheme, have raised concerns that the government may be seeking to downgrade this valuable scheme.
		In particular, the appointment of a pharmaceutical industry lobbyist to the Committee has experts concerned that this will inhibit free debate among the independent experts on the committee and is akin to placing the defendant on the jury!
	www.qnu.org.au /about_qnu/archives/changes_to_pbs (137 words)

	The Commonwealth Treasurer – Transcript - Budget; Family Tax Benefits; Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme; States; ...
		When you say to people, well, do you think it has got benefits for you, I think that there are a lot of people that say that there are but there are others that say that it doesn't.
		We have a scheme that subsidises expensive medication and the most you can pay if you are a non-pensioner is $26.80 and the most you can pay as a pensioner is $4.60.
		But if you want to keep bringing more medications onto the scheme, sometimes bringing them on at a cost of five hundred, a thousand, or more dollars, you have got to make the scheme sustainable, otherwise what the Government will just say is that we can't bring new scripts onto the, onto the Scheme.
	www.treasurer.gov.au /tsr/content/transcripts/2002/044.asp (2978 words)

	Evatt Foundation: Publication: The FTA and the PBS - 01 June 2004
		The WTO scheme relies on the issue of compulsory licences and is intended to allow states with pharmaceutical manufacturing capabilities to help address the needs for medicines by developing countries.
		Major pharmaceutical drug companies have for a number of years proposed that there should be a procedure to give them an alternative forum to appeal against, and overturn, unfavourable listing decisions by the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee.
		Pharmaceutical companies are very profitable and spend large amounts of money paving the way for the entry of their new products.
	evatt.labor.net.au /publications/papers/126.html (15118 words)

	Australia and New Zealand Health Policy \| Full text \| The Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme 2003-2004
		Recommendations of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee to list, not list or defer a decision to list a medicine on the PBS were made publicly available for the first time and the full cost of PBS medicines appeared on medicine labels if the price was greater than the co-payment.
		From June 2003, all recommendations of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) to list, not list or defer a decision to list a medicine on the PBS were made publicly available on the PBS website [9].
		Pharmaceutical promotion has clearly been shown to influence physician's prescribing [25] and has resulted in cost-blow outs on the PBS due to "leakage" of prescribing away from cost-effective indications approved by PBAC [26].
	www.anzhealthpolicy.com /content/2/1/2 (3463 words)

	Glivec should be placed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme - Online Petition
		Glivec should be placed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme
		This leaves Glivec as the only option unless a suitable donor is found for a transplant.
		Glivec is only available under the Federal Government's Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme for patients with Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia in the Accelerated or Blast phase.
	www.gopetition.com /online/847.html (260 words)

	Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme
		The Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) gives Australians access to a wide range of medicines, allows for choice between different medicines for patients and doctors, and is affordable for individuals and the community.
		The Australian Government is making changes to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme to give Australians continued access to new and expensive medicines while ensuring the PBS remains economically sustainable into the future.
		The Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) endorsed this edition of its Guidelines in November 2006.
	www.healthinsite.gov.au /topics/Pharmaceutical_Benefits_Scheme (777 words)

	Repatriation Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme
		The Repatriation Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (RPBS) provides a wide range of pharmaceuticals for the treatment of eligible veterans, war widows and widowers and dependants.
		The Scheme is available to all Australians including DVA card holders and their families.
		A pharmaceutical allowance of $5.80 a fortnight, per family, is paid to eligble veterans to compensate them for the payment for each RPBS prescription item.
	www.dva.gov.au /factsheets/documents/HSV92%20Repatriation%20Pharmaceutical%20Benefits%20Scheme.htm?ID=1080276318040 (1234 words)

	National Prescribing Service Limited
		The Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee also recommends how much of the medicine should be available on a prescription and the number of repeat prescriptions allowable.
		The Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme was set up in 1948 to ensure that Australians have access to necessary prescription medicines at an affordable price.
		Each time a medicine is dispensed, the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme pays the difference between the price paid by the consumer and the price paid to the manufacturer, plus a fee to the pharmacist for dispensing the medicine.
	www.nps.org.au /site.php?page=2&content=/resources/medicines_talk/MT_17/autumn2006_thesystem.html (1097 words)

	Part 2: Expense Measures Health and Ageing
		Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme — information campaign to improve community understanding of generic medicines
		This measure is expected to lead to savings of $70.1 million over four years, and will help to ensure responsible use of medicines as well as contributing to the sustainability of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.
		The Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee will consider the outcomes of the reviews and will recommend any necessary changes to Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme listings.
	www.budget.gov.au /2005-06/bp2/html/expense-14-b.htm (1920 words)

	Australian Women's Health Network - Fact Sheet 10: The Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS)
		A Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) was set up; they recommended that a small number of life saving or disease-preventing drugs should be made available for prescription free of charge, the costs to be paid for by the Federal Government.
		The Australian Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association (APMA) is lobbying the Federal government to remove current restrictions on DTCA of prescription drugs.
		The Pharmaceutical Health and Rational Use of Medicines (PHARM) Committee recommended a quality use of medicines (QUM) policy as the final integrating arm of national medicinal drug policy.
	www.awhn.org.au /content/view/38/88 (994 words)

	Battle of giants over funds for smoking cure - smh.com.au
		Zyban was listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme in February 2001, so a $252 course can be obtained for a $21.90 standard script cost.
		It is one of the country's 10 most-expensive drugs, costing taxpayers $80 million in subsidies through the benefits scheme in 2001.
		He believes the court action was "almost certainly" motivated by the company's desire to access the maximum Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme funding for the drug.
	www.smh.com.au /articles/2003/04/18/1050172755515.html (679 words)

	Wasted drugs add pressure to benefits scheme - www.theage.com.au
		With the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme continuing to put pressure on the budget, governments have tried to educate doctors and consumers about more efficient management of their medication.
		While the value of those medicines is almost impossible to estimate, the scheme's project manager, Simon Appel, said unwanted drugs collected from pharmacies after being returned by consumers were worth at least $1 million each year.
		A federal Health Department spokesman said the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee recommends to doctors how many repeats should be prescribed to patients to help control costs, and doctors may prescribe lower quantities if inclined.
	www.theage.com.au /articles/2003/12/27/1072308726008.html?from=storyrhs (672 words)

	Polare 14: Watching Out For Discrimination
		The authority prescription scheme is part of the pharmaceutical benefits scheme and usually requires special authorisation for a rebate on rare or expensive drugs.
		As the decision making responsibilities on access to pharmaceutical benefits lies with the commonwealth Government, Ian could make the complaint under the Sex Discrimination Act and lodge his complaint with the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission.
		In response to our letter, the HIC wrote that they had been acting on the basis of advice that the "birth" sex of a person is their sex regardless of any gender reassignment.
	www.gendercentre.org.au /14article2.htm (1033 words)

	TGA News Issue 20 (November 1995) - Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme news
		This needn't be the case as the Pharmaceutical Benefits Pricing Authority, particularly the industry representative on the Authority, is always available to explain pricing principles.
		The fact that another "me too" drug substance or formulation may be under patent, or a late entry into the marketplace, is seen as a commercial decision -- one that neither the patient nor the taxpayer should be expected to subsidise at any higher level.
		From August 1995, the Schedule of Pharmaceutical Benefits will be published four times a year without the current amendments in between.
	www.tga.gov.au /docs/html/tganews/news20/pbsnews.htm (479 words)

	MEDICARE FACT SHEET 10: THE PHARMACEUTICAL BENEFITS SCHEME (PBS)
		A Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) was set up; they recommended that a limited list of life saving or disease-preventing drugs should be made available on prescription free of charge, the costs to be paid for by the Federal Government.
		Our PBS has evolved from a scheme that fully subsidised a small number of drugs to one that partially subsidises about 650.
		Over the past few years, individual pharmaceutical companies have taken legal action over PBAC decisions to deny listing of drugs such as the erectile dysfunction treatment sildenafil (Viagra).
	www.drs.org.au /new_doctor/75/fact_sheet_10.html (1025 words)

	Latham's conditions for FTA support: the facts behind the politics - Web Diary - www.smh.com.au
		On the matter of generic pharmaceuticals, it seems to be a case of who blinks first.
		International pharmaceutical companies are no stranger to influencing the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (the people who decide what drugs make it on to Australia's coveted Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme).
		In January 2001, all but two of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee were either dismissed or resigned in protest.
	www.smh.com.au /articles/2004/08/04/1091557902614.html (1688 words)

	eMJA: Will the Australia–United States Free Trade Agreement undermine the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme? (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-03)
		Several features of AUSFTA may bring pressure to bear on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) to list “innovative” drugs that the committee initially rejected because the evidence for cost-effectiveness was not compelling.
		In January 2003, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America lobbied the US negotiators for the Free Trade Agreement with Australia (AUSFTA) to seek a commitment from the Australian government to “refrain from trade distorting, abusive, or discriminatory price controls” in relation to the operation of its Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS).
		Pharmacoeconomic analysis and reference pricing are used to determine the true worth of the benefits of a new drug, while national bargaining power is used to counter the increasingly prolonged price-setting monopoly accorded to pharmaceutical patent holders.
	www.mja.com.au /public/rop/ausfta/har10408_fm.html (2520 words)

	AM Archive - Fears for drug subsidies
		The former Chairman of the Advisory Council that recommends which drugs should be included for subsidy under the scheme, says costs must be contained if the PBS is to survive.
		He believes the PBS is not sustainable with the increasing costs and says it's the result of new drugs like Celebrex and Zyban being added to the scheme.
		LEIGH SALES: The Opposition's saying that this is further evidence that the pharmaceutical benefits scheme is being weakened.
	www.abc.net.au /am/stories/s304846.htm (557 words)

	PM - Government defends attempt to increase drug cost
		We actually did some research earlier in the year, and found that people weren't aware of how much their medication was subsidised by the public.
		The most commonly prescribed medication on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme costs $80 dollars, per person, per script, and the public isn't aware of that.
		KAY PATTERSON: Look, I've got a responsibility as the Minister for Health, to ensure that the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme is viable into the future.
	www.abc.net.au /pm/stories/s668411.htm (857 words)

	ARPA: Pharmaceutical benefits and free trade
		Under the scheme, low drug prices are negotiated by the combination of stringent cost-benefit (or ‘pharmacoeconomic’) analyses and the market power of a centralised buying system (see Harvey 2001; Wright 2003).
		Nor is it surprising that President Bush, who benefited to the tune of $14 million from the US pharmaceutical industry during his 2000 campaign, singled out changes to the PBS that would help US companies when he visited Australia last October (Colebatch 2003).
		Ironically, while the pharmaceutical industry—and the FTA—profess the need for greater transparency in PBAC decision-making, to date the major impediment to transparency has been ‘commercial-in-confidence’ claims by the industry.
	www.australianreview.net /digest/2004/03/harvey.html (2110 words)

	Government should plough drug savings into Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-03)
		Doctors and medicine-makers today called for an expected $280 million Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) windfall to be ploughed into bringing down the price of new cancer and HIV drugs.
		Pharmaceutical industry bodies estimate the PBS will save about $280 million in 2005 as patents over several big-name drugs expire, opening the way for cheaper generic versions to be released on to the market.
		Both the Australian Medical Association (AMA) and drug manufacturers' body Medicines Australia called on the government to reinvest the savings in the PBS and make new drugs available to more Australian patients.
	www.news-medical.net /?id=7190 (511 words)

	Access to high cost drugs in Australia -- Lu et al. 329 (7463): 415 -- BMJ
		1995 guidelines for the pharmaceutical industry on preparation of submissions to the pharmaceutical benefits advisory committee: including major submissions involving economic analyses.
		Schedule of pharmaceutical benefits for approved pharmacists and medical practitioners.
		Authority to supply etanercept (Enbrel) through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme under section 85 (adults) and section 100 (juveniles) of the National Health Act 1953.
	bmj.bmjjournals.com /cgi/content/full/329/7463/415 (917 words)

	Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme Drug Listings
		The Review of post Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) processes has been a collaborative effort between the Department and Medicines Australia to explore innovative options to reduce the time taken to list approved drugs on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) so that they are more quickly available to the Australian community.
		Oral isotretinoin is listed on the Australian Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme for patients with severe cystic acne that has failed to respond adequately to other therapy.
		The quinolone antibiotic moxifloxacin has been listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS), for the oral treatment of community-acquired pneumonia in adults and children over 12 years old who have immediate hypersensitivity to penicillin.
	www.healthinsite.gov.au /topics/Pharmaceutical_Benefits_Scheme_Drug_Listings (854 words)

	Drug policy down under: Australia's pharmaceutical benefits scheme Health Care Financing Review - Find Articles
		The third element of government protection against health costs is in the form of the PBS that predated the major expansion of government support for hospital and medical care.
		Expenditure on pharmaceuticals is 12.4 percent of total health expenditure and 14.1 percent of government health expenditure.
		In 2000, Australia spent approximately $292 per person, per year on pharmaceutical services (adjusted to U.S. dollars using purchasing parities), compared with U.S. expenditure of $541 per capita (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 2003).
	findarticles.com /p/articles/mi_m0795/is_3_25/ai_n6126944 (849 words)

	Breast Cancer > Breast Cancer Drug Herceptin Is Subsidized In Australia
		The Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee has recommended that the Australian Government subsidise, under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS), the drug, trastuzumab (Herceptin), for the treatment of patients with HER2 positive early stage breast cancer following surgery.
		The Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) recommended that the Australian Government subsidise, under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS), the drug, trastuzumab (Herceptin), for the treatment of patients with HER-2 positive early stage breast cancer following surgery, for a maximum period of 12 months to be commenced concurrently with adjuvant chemotherapy.
		The PBAC recommendation for eligibility does not specify a tumour size as there is no clear link in the evidence to suggest that this is a relevant factor in identifying the group of patients who will benefit.
	www.emaxhealth.com /98/7638.html (945 words)

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