Medicines Australia congratulates outgoing Minister for Health and Ageing Nicola Roxon and outgoing Innovation and Industry Minister Senator Kim Carr on their contributions to their respective portfolios over the past four years.

Medicines Australia chief executive Dr Brendan Shaw also welcomed the appointments of Tanya Plibersek as Minister for Health and Greg Combet as Minister for Industry and Innovation.

“Both Minster Roxon and Minister Carr have ensured constructive policy dialogue between the Government and the Australian medicines industry,” Dr Shaw said.

“Both have been willing to engage with the industry and work collaboratively to develop sound policy.

“At the same time, I congratulate Minister Plibersek and Minister Combet on their appointments and Medicines Australia looks forward to working constructively with them and continuing the important work in these two key portfolios.

“Minister Roxon has consolidated the 2007 reforms to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.

“She was instrumental in securing the Memorandum of Understanding between the Australian Government and Medicines Australia which has delivered savings to the Government and a degree of predictability for industry.

“Under her leadership, the PBS has been well managed and is now enjoying record low growth, which creates the capacity to bring new medicines onto the PBS.

“Minister Carr has been a passionate advocate for the Australian medicines industry. He has achieved the introduction of the R&D tax credit and has been central to the reforms to improve our international competitiveness in attracting clinical trials to Australia.

“We look forward to continuing to work with Minister Carr, in his new capacity as Minister for Manufacturing.

“We also look forward to working with Minister Plibersek, who has shown a strong interest in health issues throughout her parliamentary career.”

Dr Shaw also congratulated Minister for Mental Health and Ageing Mark Butler on his elevation to the Cabinet.

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Contact Person:

Jamie Nicholson
Media Communications Manager
Phone: 0419 220 293
Email: Jamie.Nicholson@medicinesaustralia.com.au

Medicines Australia is disappointed at the Government’s decision not to accept the key recommendations of the Trimmer Review into the promotion of therapeutic goods, but will continue to push for a level playing field for promotional activity.

Medicines Australia chief executive Dr Brendan Shaw said it was disappointing that the Blueprint for TGA’s Future, released by the Government today, did not address the issue of different ethical standards within the therapeutics sector.

“The review into promotion of therapeutic goods argued for a consistent ethical standard across the sector between members of industry associations and non-members, but that recommendation has not been accepted,” Dr Shaw said.

“That is very disappointing. This was a rare opportunity for stakeholders across the health sector to implement important regulatory reform which was identified by Government as a gap in industry self-regulation.

“The fact is we need a common ethical standard across the sector. There is no reason why Medicines Australia member companies should be required to adhere to one standard while non-members adhere to a lesser standard.

“We need to make sure our member companies are not disadvantaged by doing the right thing. In releasing its response to the Trimmer Review, the Government stated its support for strong and effective industry self-regulation.

“We need to prevent behaviour that undermines public confidence in the pharmaceutical industry.

“Medicines Australia’s member companies have worked hard over the years to have a Code of Conduct that enshrines ethical standards that meet community expectations.

“There needs to be a level playing field that applies to all companies – not just those who choose to belong to Medicines Australia. Appropriate standards of conduct must apply across the board.”

Medicines Australia welcomes the Government’s commitment outlined in the Blueprint to ensure more transparent regulatory processes in Australia.

The Government’s endorsement of the transparency reforms for the TGA is a step forward for the health system.

“These reforms aimed at greater transparency will help demystify the regulatory process for the ordinary Australians who benefit from them,” Dr Shaw said.

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Contact Person:

Jamie Nicholson
Media Communications Manager
Phone: 0419 220 293
Email: Jamie.Nicholson@medicinesaustralia.com.au

The latest Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing’s annual review of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme shows that the program grew by just 5.2 per cent in 2010-11 – or 1.6 per cent in real terms.

This follows yesterday’s MYEFO, showing lower PBS growth this financial year.

Medicines Australia chief executive Dr Brendan Shaw said today the new data irrefutably demonstrates that public spending on the PBS is well under control.

“This is fresh and compelling evidence that the PBS is in good shape,” Dr Shaw said.

“The Government’s own figures show that real growth is minimal. I urge Government to stop and look at this data carefully as it frames the 2012 Federal Budget.

“These latest figures convey a very clear message: PBS spending is under control and is not presenting the Government with any fiscal challenge.

“If anything, there is probably a good case for increasing investment in the PBS. If the figures get much lower, there would be grounds for concern that the Government was not investing enough in patient access to medicines.

“The Government’s own Intergenerational Report projected that the PBS as a proportion of GDP will be flat right out to 2020.

“Now the Department of Health’s expenditure report also points to a sustainable PBS with extremely modest spending growth that is not much above inflation. And MYEFO is forecasting PBS spending to be $1.8 billion lower than expected.

“We know that the medicines deferred by Cabinet in February had next to no impact on these numbers, given the small costs involved.

“Instead, these figures provide further evidence that the Government’s PBS policies together with the Medicines Australia-Australian Government Memorandum of Understanding are allowing the PBS to provide innovative medicines to patients while keeping the PBS on a sustainable footing.

“Given the slow growth of the PBS, the MoU and expected future price reductions, it is hard to see how any further cuts to the PBS can be good policy.”

Expenditure and prescriptions twelve months to 30 June 2011 is available from the Department of Health and Ageing website (please follow link)

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Contact Person:

Jamie Nicholson
Media Communications Manager
Phone: 0419 220 293
Email: Jamie.Nicholson@medicinesaustralia.com.au

Medicines Australia has presented the Federal Opposition’s Industries for Australia’s Future review with an action plan to ensure the Australian medicines industry can continue to contribute to economic growth.

The plan includes recommendations to lower the corporate tax rate to 20 per cent, strengthen intellectual property laws, establish a strategic co-investment fund and improve the investment environment for clinical trials in Australia.

Medicines Australia chief executive Dr Brendan Shaw said the medicines industry was well placed to contribute to future economic growth in Australia if governments were prepared to adopt the right vision and policy settings.

“We’ve identified a number of areas in which reforms would help ensure the medicines industry’s long-term viability in Australia,” Dr Shaw said.

“These reforms will help the medicines industry contribute substantially to sustainable economic growth, driving global investment and supporting high-wage jobs.

“We need to make Australia more competitive as an investment destination for clinical trials by making it cheaper and quicker to start new trials here.

“We need to reduce the corporate tax rate to 20 per cent.

“We need a strategic co-investment fund of the kind that created 1000 new jobs and achieved an increase of $4 billion in value-add in the 1990s.

“We need a much more stable and predictable business environment.

“Unfortunately it is becoming increasingly difficult to make global companies in knowledge-intensive industries view Australia as a preferred destination for major investment. That is certainly true of the medicines industry and that is why we need Australia needs to take a bold and visionary approach to investing in industry.

“We welcome the current debate about the future of Australian industry. It is long overdue and we congratulate the Federal Opposition for their engagement in it.

“The Australian medicines industry has some basic competitive advantages that provide us with the potential to take the industry to the next level in the global marketplace and help secure Australian innovative manufacturing in a post-mining boom future.

“The industry already generates 14,000 high skill jobs, $1 billion in R&D, 700 clinical trials, and $4 billion a year in exports which is more than the car or wine industries.

“Australia can build on this base if we put the policy settings and vision in place to do it.”

Medicines Australia’s submission is available here

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Contact Person:

Jamie Nicholson
Media Communications Manager
Phone: 0419 220 293
Email: Jamie.Nicholson@medicinesaustralia.com.au

A new study comparing access to prescription medicines in New Zealand with that in Australia highlights the alarming deficiencies of the medicines system across the Tasman, Medicines Australia chief executive Dr Brendan Shaw said today.

The research, published this week in The New Zealand Medical Journal, found that New Zealanders have access to less than half the number of prescription medicines that Australians can access.

It also found that new medicines gain regulatory approval on average nine months sooner in Australia, and are listed for Government subsidy almost three years earlier.

Dr Shaw said the study illustrated the dangers of doing healthcare on the cheap.

“This study provides clear and compelling evidence why Australia should not be emulating the New Zealand model for subsidising prescription medicines,” Dr Shaw said.

“It shows that in the past 10 years New Zealand patients have had access to less than half the number of new medicines that Australians have had.

“That is a very sobering statistic at a time when some commentators are suggesting that management of Australia’s Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme should be guided by the New Zealand model.

“The evidence highlights the fact that there are simply no subsidised medicines available at all in New Zealand in a number of therapeutic areas, and a disturbing lack of treatment options in many others.

“This is a direct result of the policies and processes adopted by New Zealand to assess and reimburse medicines there.

“That’s what happens when you don’t invest in healthcare and your primary focus is on cost-cutting. As the Australian Government’s decision to defer the listing of medicines on the PBS earlier this year shows, it’s not a situation that Australian patients either want or tolerate.

“This journal article confirms what we already knew. New Zealand is a basket case when it comes to access to medicines.

“It’s time to ‘call it’ for those recommending Australia adopt New Zealand’s reimbursement policies. For years we have heard suggestions that Australia should run its medicines reimbursement system like New Zealand.

“Typically these advocates fail to mention that New Zealanders do not have access to many of the treatments available in Australia, or have to wait three years longer than Australians for the ones they do have.

“This study proves the way New Zealand has kept costs down is by denying patients access to a range of treatments that Australian patients and doctors take for granted.

“With the Australian Government’s MYEFO and 2012 Budget in preparation, this study is a timely reminder that programs like the PBS are more than just a line item in the Budget. It’s an investment in people’s health.

“The last place health policymakers in this country should be looking for ideas is across the Tasman.”

The study corroborates a separate International Report on Access to Medicines released last year in Canada which ranked Australia in the bottom third of OECD countries by many measures, and ranked New Zealand amongst the worst in the OECD.

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Contact Person:

Jamie Nicholson
Media Communications Manager
Phone: 0419 220 293
Email: Jamie.Nicholson@medicinesaustralia.com.au

The Government’s announcement of several key initiatives to promote vaccination is a major step forward in improving the health of Australians, Medicines Australia chief executive Dr Brendan Shaw said today.

Children will be vaccinated earlier, and the Government will add an additional vaccine to the schedule that combines measles, mumps, rubella and chicken pox vaccines in a single dose. Also, the definition of “fully immunised” has been expanded to include meningococcal C, pneumococcal and chicken pox vaccination.

Dr Shaw said increasing vaccination rates is in the interests of the broader community as well as individual children.

“Immunisation not only protects the individual, but also protects families and the wider community from the spread of infection,” Dr Shaw said.

“It is one of the most effective ways of preventing disease, and the Government’s announcement today is a very positive move.

“Vaccines developed and manufactured by the medicines industry have been one of the key reasons the death rates from infectious diseases have plummeted in Australia since the 1920s.

“The investment by medicines companies in vaccines has helped save lives over generations.

“Australians have overwhelmingly recognised the importance of vaccination in improving health outcomes. A recent Newspoll survey found that 94 per cent of people agree that immunisation is an effective way of preventing the spread of disease.

“Every day, immunisation saves lives and makes it possible for many Australians to live free from the illnesses and disability caused by many infectious diseases.

“But there is no room for complacency. If immunisation rates were to fall death rates from these diseases may start to rise again.

“So I congratulate the Government. The measures announced today protect against complacency. They are important initiatives to encourage parents to be up-to-date with vaccines for their families.”

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Contact Person:

Jamie Nicholson
Media Communications Manager
Phone: 0419 220 293
Email: Jamie.Nicholson@medicinesaustralia.com.au

The Federal Government’s support for the patenting of genetic materials should enable patients to continue enjoying access to biological medicines, the chief executive of Medicines Australia Dr Brendan Shaw said today.

Dr Shaw said the Government’s decision would benefit Australian patients as well as researchers and manufacturers of biological medicines.

“Patents on biological materials are important because they guarantee ongoing investment in developing cutting-edge medicines and therapies,” Dr Shaw said.

“They ensure Australians have access to these medicines as soon as they become available.

“Four Government inquiries over the last decade, including two by the Australian Senate, have found that there is no case for banning patients on biological materials.

“I congratulate the Government for recognising the value of patents of biological materials for the advancement of medicine.”

Medicines Australia supports the Government’s Raising the Bar Bill, which will bring Australia’s intellectual property system into line with intellectual property systems in other OECD countries.

“There is no doubt that Australia’s patent system needs to be reformed,” Dr Shaw said.

“The Government’s Raising the Bar Bill is the most effective mechanism for achieving those reforms.

“The Raising the Bar Bill, currently before the Parliament, is more balanced and constructive than the proposed ban on gene patents,” Dr Shaw said.

“It will encourage medical innovators and research scientists and will better serve the Australian community at large.”

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Contact Person:

Jamie Nicholson
Media Communications Manager
Phone: 0419 220 293
Email: Jamie.Nicholson@medicinesaustralia.com.au

A Medicines Australia paper launched at Parliament House tonight (Tuesday) shows the Federal Government’s plan to invigorate the clinical trials industry is working but that implementation must be completed.

Keeping clinical trials in Australia: why action is needed now argues that the recommendations of the Clinical Trials Action Group hold the key to ensuring the future of clinical trials in Australia. The CTAG was set up by the Government to help cement Australia’s position as a good place to conduct clinical trials.

Medicines Australia chief executive Dr Brendan Shaw said it was critical for the Federal Government finish the job.

“The paper shows that the recommendations being implemented are starting to work, but Australia can’t afford for this issue to slip off the agenda,” Dr Shaw said.

“The CTAG plan represents a precious opportunity to help restore Australia’s international reputation as a centre of excellence for clinical trials.

“We are making some progress towards that but it’s critical that we don’t drop the ball.”

The paper shows that the number of new clinical trials in Australia has been declining over the past three years by an average of 13 per cent per year.

“It’s very much in the national interest to reverse this trend,” Dr Shaw said.

“The Australian Medicines Industry invests more than $1 billion a year in pharmaceutical R&D, but we face increasing competition from emerging economies.

“Australia needs to become more attractive as an investment destination. We need to make it easier and cheaper to start new clinical trials.

“We need a nationally harmonised system of ethics approval for multi-centre clinical trials, so that trial sponsors need one single approval instead of half a dozen.

“We need to improve patient recruitment and better national coordination and greater collaboration across trial networks.

“We boast some of the world’s best clinical research scientists and state-of-the-art clinical research infrastructure.But Australia can only capitalise on that advantage by continuing to implement the Government’s clinical trials plan.”

Keeping Clinical Trials in Australia: Why Action is Needed Now is available online at: http://medicinesaustralia.com.au/issues-information/publications/occasional-papers/

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Contact Person:

Jamie Nicholson
Media Communications Manager
Phone: 0419 220 293
Email: Jamie.Nicholson@medicinesaustralia.com.au

Medicines Australia Chief Executive Dr Brendan Shaw today congratulated Sonya Pemberton, of Pemberton Films, on winning the 2011 National Press Club Health Journalist of the Year Award.

Ms Pemberton was named as one of the four category winners for the story “Immortal”, made by Melbourne production company December Media with Pemberton Films. Her prize as overall winner is an international study tour with a focus on the health industry.

The Awards were presented at the Address by Health Minister Nicola Roxon at the National Press Club today.

“I congratulate Sonya and all the category winners,” Dr Shaw said.

“Australia is well served by an especially high standard in health journalism and Medicines Australia is very pleased to continue its support for these prestigious awards.”

National Press Club President Laurie Wilson also thanked Medicines Australia as Awards Principal sponsor, NAB Health, Telstra Health and VISA as supporting sponsors.

The full list of winners is:

BEST NEWS FEATURE / ARTICLE OR PRESENTATION

Health, Health Sciences or Innovation

Winner – Dr Maryanne Demasi, ABC TV Catalyst – ‘Corneal Stem Cells – Window to the Eye’

Highly Commended – Jill Margo, AFR – ‘Why are we taking so much Vitamin D’

BEST DOCUMENTARY OR DOCUMENTARY SERIES

Health, Health Science or Innovation
Winner – Sonya Pemberton , December Media & Pemberton Films – ‘Immortal”

Highly Commended – Ellen Fanning, 60 Minutes – ‘Getting the Point’

BEST FEATURE / ARTICLE OR PRESENTATION

Health Policy, Health Economics and Health Business

Winner – Les Pearson, Riverland Weekly – ‘Yuendumu’ series

Winner – Paul Smith, Australian Doctor – ‘AMI impotency clinics’ series

BEST NEWS FEATURE / ARTICLE OR PRESENTATION

For reporting on Health, Health Science or Innovation directed to medical professionals

Winner – Peter Waterman, Australian Pharmacist – ‘Even Accidental Counsellors Have to be Brave’ 

HEALTH JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR

Awarded to the most outstanding entry among the winners of the previous four categories

Sonya Pemberton – December Media & Pemberton Films – ‘Immortal”

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Contact Person:

Maurice Reilly
Ph: +61 2 61212152 (direct)
Mob: +61 0415 738 473
Email: ceo@npc.org.au

Medicines Australia chief executive Dr Brendan Shaw has congratulated two of Australia’s leading medicines manufacturers on winning the 2011 Business Achievement Awards, an initiative of the Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency.

CSL won the Minister’s Award for Outstanding EEO Initiative/Result for the Advancement of Women.

GlaxoSmithKline vice-president and general manager Deborah Waterhouse, a Medicines Australia Board member, won the EOWA Director’s Award for an individual.

Dr Shaw said the awards demonstrate the medicines industry’s commitment to promoting equal opportunity for women in the workplace.

“I congratulate both of these companies on winning these important awards,” Dr Shaw said.

“Their recognition is richly deserved. CSL and GlaxoSmithKline are two companies with a strong track record in fostering gender equity, reflective of the broader medicines industry’s commitment to equal opportunity for women.

“The success of these companies reflects an industry culture that is inclusive, just and alert to the importance of encouraging workplace diversity.

“These awards send a strong signal that The Australian Medicines Industry is a great place to work.

“So now, as well as being a manufacturing industry that is innovative, high skill, high wage, carbon efficient and a leading exporter, the medicines industry has also shown its credentials as an equal opportunity employer where both men and women can enjoy working in skilled, high wage jobs.”

Dr Shaw also congratulated a third manufacturer, AMGEN, which was nominated as a finalist for the Leading Organisation for the Advancement of Women (<800 employees) Award.

For further information about the EOWA Business Achievement Awards, contact: Vanessa Crago on (02) 9448 8500 or Jude McGee on (02) 9448 8500

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Contact Person:

Jamie Nicholson
Media Communications Manager
Phone: 0419 220 293
Email: Jamie.Nicholson@medicinesaustralia.com.au