Leaders seize political reset to demand action on delayed health reforms

The federal election has redrawn the political map, delivering a resounding victory to the Australian Labor Party and ousting Opposition Leader Peter Dutton from his seat of Dickson. On aggregate, Labor and the Coalition recorded their lowest combined share of primary votes – just 65%, down 1.5% since 2022.

Reflecting the shifting of voter sentiment, the Greens have lost ground in key seats despite a slight increase in primary vote. Independents, on the other hand, have expanded their vote share by 4.5% and held firm on their number of seats.

As the dust settles, stakeholders from across the healthcare sector are wasting no time in outlining their priorities for the re-elected Albanese Government.

Medicines Australia, AusBiotech, the Pharmacy Guild of Australia and the Australian College of Nursing (ACN) have congratulated Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, seizing the moment to reignite momentum on long-stalled health policy reforms.

Medicines Australia CEO Elizabeth de Somer said, “Strengthening the PBS through implementation of the health technology assessment (HTA) reform recommendations will ensure Australians see faster access to safe and effective, innovative medicines.

“Active Australian-led reform of the PBS must be the priority. Science and medicines have evolved significantly in the last 30 years where no meaningful reform has occurred. The system is no longer fit for purpose and patients are waiting too long – on average 466 days when elsewhere in the world the wait may be as low as 60 days.”

She added, “Patients, clinicians, the medicines industry and government are all aligned on the need for reform. The blueprint is sitting on the desk of the Hon Mark Butler MP, and now with the election out of the way, we need to get on with it.”

Her remarks were echoed by patient advocacy groups including Patients Australia, MSCAN, hearts4heart, Crohn’s and Colitis Australia (CCA) and the Patient Voice Initiative (PVI), who have grown increasingly vocal over the prolonged delays in HTA reforms, citing slower-than-acceptable progress on the implementation of the recommendations.

De Somer reinforced, “Medicines Australia will work with the Health Minister to ensure this is an early term priority of the re-elected Albanese Government.”

At the same time, AusBiotech is pushing for a whole-of-government approach to the life sciences sector, starting with the establishment of a National Life Sciences Council.

“In a rapidly evolving global landscape, marked by geopolitical and trade shifts, supply chain challenges, ageing populations, chronic disease and more, the need to prioritise Australia’s world-leading biotechnology and medical technology industry has never been more pressing,” AusBiotech CEO Rebekah Cassidy stated. “We need to continue building, scaling, and retaining our globally competitive biotechnology and medical technology capability as a national asset.”

On the pharmacy front, the Guild is gearing up for implementation of PBS changes. The Pharmacy Guild of Australia National President, Professor Trent Twomey, said, “We look forward to this landmark change taking effect from 1 January 2026, when more than 4 million Australians every week will pay no more than $25 for their PBS-listed medicines – a saving of $6.60 per script. The change will benefit the more than 20 million Australians who don’t hold a concession card. Over four years, this puts $689 million back in the pockets of patients.”

He continued, “We also look forward to continuing to work with the Albanese Government to build on its reforms to expanding Australian women’s access to the frontline health services they depend on, such as contraception and menopause management.

“Community pharmacy is the nation’s most accessible frontline health destination, and it just makes sense that women can visit a community pharmacy to get a script for their everyday reproductive and hormonal medicine needs.”

The Australian College of Nursing (ACN) is throwing its support behind a bolder reform agenda, calling for the government to look beyond doctor-led models of care.

ACN CEO Adjunct Professor Kathryn Zeitz FACN is urging the government to accelerate its health reform agenda, particularly by implementing the recommendations of the Scope of Practice Review (the Cormack Review), to unlock the full capacity and potential of all health professionals.

“It is vital that the momentum for significant and much-needed health reform initiated by Health Minister Mark Butler, Assistant Health Minister Ged Kearney, Aged Care Minister Anika Wells, and Assistant Minister for Indigenous Health Malarndirri McCarthy, continues and picks up pace in this second term,” Adjunct Professor Zeitz emphasised.

“The time to restructure the health system for the future is now.”

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