Australians are fortunate to have one of the finest health care systems in the world. 

One of the pillars of that system is the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS), which ensures that every Australian citizen has access to affordable medicine.  

The PBS began in 1948, providing free medicines to pensioners and access to life-saving and disease-preventing medicines for others in the community.

Today, under the PBS, the Australian government subsidises the cost of most medicines – after prior approval by the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee.

Medicines available through the PBS are available via a prescription from your doctor, although some, such chemotherapy drugs, are only administered under medical supervision.

The PBS doesn’t mean that medications are free. You will need to make a co-payment for your medications. As of January 2015 the cost of most PBS medicines is $37.50 and $6.10 for concession card holders. You can find out more about fees and charges here.

However a Safety Net ensures access to affordable medicine for everyone. After reaching the Safety Net threshold ($366.00 for concession card holders and $1,453.90 for all other patients), you can obtain medications at a reduced rate for the rest of the calendar year. Concession card holders won’t be charged, while general patients will be charged at the concessional rate.    

To be part of the PBS a medicine must first meet stringent criteria:

• It must be approved by the Therapeutic Goods Administration;
• It must be safe and effective;
• It must be cost-effective;
• It must be considered within a range of factors including the need for hospitalisation, ongoing care and resulting quality of life.

As a result of the guidelines it can take some time before new medicines are admitted into the scheme – meantime users must pay full full-price of the medications. Therefore there is considerable demand for new therapies for diseases such as cancer, Crohn’s disease and multiple sclerosis to be admitted to the PBS as quickly as possible. 

The PBS is administered through Medicare, so to be eligible for the PBS you need to hold a current Medicare card. Some countries have reciprocal health agreements with Australia, so some overseas visitors and temporary residents may also claim from the scheme – check with Medicare for more information.

You can find more information about the PBS here.