14 May 2024 - The Albanese Labor Government is continuing to improve our health system: strengthening Medicare, the heart of universal health care, easing cost of living pressures with cheaper medicines, and embedding new mental health services in Medicare.

The Albanese Government is delivering cheaper medicines to ease pressure on household budgets, freezing the maximum cost of a PBS medicine, making Australia a destination for clinical trials so Australians get early access to life-changing medicines, and adding more medicines to the PBS.

$3.4 billion to list new medicines on the PBS, including for four thousand eight hundred Australians with cardiac disease that will benefit from the listing of tafamidis (Vyndamax) and mavacamten (Camzyos). Without subsidy, patients could expect to pay $122,000 or $30,000 a year, respectively, but instead will pay only $31.60, or just $7.70 for pensioners and concession cardholders.

Read Minister of Health press release

Editor's note: the PBS listing of tafamidis and mavacamten was announced by the Minister of Health earlier this month. Both were listed on the PBS on 1 May 2024.