4 September 2018 - Should other listing types be in the mix?

Previous articles/analyses have focussed on just one listing type; the initial PBS listing of a new medicine, gene therapy or combination product. It could be argued that the agreement to speed up PBS listing times should be extended to include other listing types.  The PBS listing of the PD-L1 antagonists for new cancer types/patients are important.

So what other listing types should be in the mix? Important new uses of PBS listed medicines (i.e. new indications) clearly should but what about the listing of new vaccines on the NIP as well as new medicines on the Life Saving Drugs Program (LSDP).

Improving LSDP listing timelines is probably a task for the newly formed LSDP Expert Panel.  LSDP listings are rare events (the last was in 2016), so there is no clear baseline.

Timely listing of new vaccines on the NIP is an important public health policy objective. It appears as though vaccines will not be in the mix as the agreement relates to PBS listings.

What effect will the inclusion of new indications in the mix have on the current baseline values. 14 new indications have been listed on the PBS so far this year; the mean time from PBAC recommendation to PBS listing is 177 days (median 149 days).  The inclusion of these 14 listings in the mix will reduced the mean time from 269 days to 230 days (median 149 days).