This bill became law on Jul 9th, 2024.
Health, care & disability
Community pharmacies can get a new extra Commonwealth payment for eligible PBSThe government scheme that subsidises medicines so patients pay less than the full price. medicine supplies from 1 April 2024, helping keep local pharmacy dispensing going without raising patient medicine costs.
The Eighth Community Pharmacy AgreementThe funding deal between the government and pharmacy sector that this bill gives legal effect to. left a legal gap: community pharmacies needed extra Commonwealth support to keep dispensing PBSThe government scheme that subsidises medicines so patients pay less than the full price. medicines without raising patient costs, and PBSThe government scheme that subsidises medicines so patients pay less than the full price. co-payments were otherwise set to rise. This bill lets the government pay pharmacists an extra supply support payment, freezes some PBSThe government scheme that subsidises medicines so patients pay less than the full price. price increases, and phases out the optional $1 discount.
After the Albanese government and the Pharmacy Guild negotiated the Eighth Community Pharmacy AgreementThe funding deal between the government and pharmacy sector that this bill gives legal effect to. from August 2023, the Commonwealth committed up to $3 billion to keep community pharmacies financially supported and avoid higher PBSThe government scheme that subsidises medicines so patients pay less than the full price. costs for patients. The bill then supplied the legal machinery for a new Additional Commonwealth Supply Support payment backdated to 1 April 2024, froze general and concessional co-payment rises, and set a gradual end to the optional $1 discount as normal indexation returns from 2026 and 2030.
The main criticism was that the package could squeeze independent community pharmacies, especially in small towns, by cutting revenue and pushing more stores to sell out to large chains. That stronger case against the bill was mainly raised by Bob Katter, while the Coalition still backed the bill but said the government’s poor consultation had created avoidable risks for pharmacy viability.
Mark Butler MP introduced this bill. It passed on the voices.
Did it become law?
Yes
Became law 09 July 2024
Final passage
Passed without a counted vote
2 recorded amendment or procedural votes were found, but no counted vote on the bill itself was recorded.
Passage speed
33 days
From introduction to the latest recorded parliamentary step
Meaning
Community pharmacies can get a new extra Commonwealth payment for eligible PBSThe government scheme that subsidises medicines so patients pay less than the full price. medicine supplies from 1 April 2024, helping keep local pharmacy dispensing going without raising patient medicine costs.
PBSThe government scheme that subsidises medicines so patients pay less than the full price. medicine co-payments for general patients stay at the 2024 rate through 2025, and concessional co-payments stay at the 2024 rate through 2029, so price rises are delayed.
The optional $1 PBS discountAn optional discount some pharmacies can give off the patient co-payment, which this bill phases out over time. offered by some pharmacies starts shrinking from 1 January 2025 and keeps shrinking as normal co-payment indexation resumes, so it is gradually phased out.
Pharmacists who already claimed for eligible PBSThe government scheme that subsidises medicines so patients pay less than the full price. supplies made between 1 April 2024 and the law starting do not need to lodge a second claim for the new extra payment.
The Bill will introduce the new ACSS payment for eligible supplies of pharmaceutical benefits made by approved pharmacists from 1 April 2024. The ACSS payment will be paid to approved pharmacists outside of, and in addition to, the existing Commonwealth price based mechanism for Commonwealth payments in respect of pharmaceutical benefits.National Health Amendment (Supporting Patient Access to Cheaper Medicines and Other Measures) explanatory memorandum
a one year freeze in indexation of the PBS general patient co-payment and a five year freeze in indexation of the PBS concessional (general patient reduced and concessional beneficiary) patient co-payments. As a result of the freeze the general patient co-payment will remain at its 2024 rate of $31.60 until the end of 2025 and the concessional co-payments will remain at their 2024 rate of $7.70 until the end of 2029; andNational Health Amendment (Supporting Patient Access to Cheaper Medicines and Other Measures) explanatory memorandum
a gradual phasing-out of the $1 allowable discount that pharmacies can choose to offer to patients. The allowable discount will be gradually reduced each year, starting on 1 January 2025, by an amount equal to what the relevant patient co-payment would have been increased by, but for the freeze in indexation. If the allowable discount has not reached $0 by the time indexation recommences, the allowable discount will be reduced by the amount of the indexation.National Health Amendment (Supporting Patient Access to Cheaper Medicines and Other Measures) explanatory memorandum
(2) The claim is taken to also be a claim under section 99AAA of the Act for the ACSS payment for the supply of that benefit.National Health Amendment (Supporting Patient Access to Cheaper Medicines and Other Measures) Act 2024 final Act text
Context
After the Albanese government and the Pharmacy Guild negotiated the Eighth Community Pharmacy AgreementThe funding deal between the government and pharmacy sector that this bill gives legal effect to. from August 2023, the Commonwealth committed up to $3 billion to keep community pharmacies financially supported and avoid higher PBSThe government scheme that subsidises medicines so patients pay less than the full price. costs for patients. The bill then supplied the legal machinery for a new Additional Commonwealth Supply Support payment backdated to 1 April 2024, froze general and concessional co-payment rises, and set a gradual end to the optional $1 discount as normal indexation returns from 2026 and 2030.
Negotiations begin on the Eighth Community Pharmacy AgreementThe funding deal between the government and pharmacy sector that this bill gives legal effect to.
The government said talks on the new pharmacy agreement began in August 2023 as it worked toward a package aimed at cheaper medicines and support for community pharmacies.
Hansard ↗Budget commits up to $3 billion for the pharmacy agreement and cheaper medicines
The 2024-25 Budget funded the Eighth Community Pharmacy AgreementThe funding deal between the government and pharmacy sector that this bill gives legal effect to. package, including $2.111 billion for the new support payment and $484.4 million for co-payment freezes and the $1 discount phase-out.
Explanatory memorandum ↗New pharmacy support payment starts for eligible PBSThe government scheme that subsidises medicines so patients pay less than the full price. supplies
The bill backdated the Additional Commonwealth Supply Support payment to eligible PBSThe government scheme that subsidises medicines so patients pay less than the full price. supplies from 1 April 2024 so pharmacies could receive extra Commonwealth funding without lifting patient medicine prices.
Explanatory memorandum ↗Parliament passes the bill
Both houses passed the bill, clearing the way for the agreed pharmacy support payments and PBSThe government scheme that subsidises medicines so patients pay less than the full price. co-payment changes to be written into law.
Parliamentary timeline ↗Eighth Community Pharmacy AgreementThe funding deal between the government and pharmacy sector that this bill gives legal effect to. takes effect
The explanatory memorandum says the 8CPAThe funding deal between the government and pharmacy sector that this bill gives legal effect to. took effect on 1 July 2024, including arrangements for dispute resolution about Commonwealth priceThe government-set amount used to work out what is paid for a PBS medicine supply before any patient co-payment. payments and ACSS amounts.
Explanatory memorandum ↗Phase-out of the optional $1 PBS discountAn optional discount some pharmacies can give off the patient co-payment, which this bill phases out over time. begins
From 2025 the optional $1 discount offered by some pharmacies begins shrinking as part of the package that kept 2024 PBSThe government scheme that subsidises medicines so patients pay less than the full price. co-payment levels in place for longer.
Explanatory memorandum ↗General PBSThe government scheme that subsidises medicines so patients pay less than the full price. co-payment indexation resumes
After the one-year freeze, the general patientA PBS patient who is not eligible for the lower concessional co-payment rate. PBSThe government scheme that subsidises medicines so patients pay less than the full price. co-payment remains at $31.60 through 2025 and does not resume indexation until 1 January 2026.
Explanatory memorandum ↗Concessional PBSThe government scheme that subsidises medicines so patients pay less than the full price. co-payment indexation resumes
After staying at $7.70 through the end of 2029, concessional PBSThe government scheme that subsidises medicines so patients pay less than the full price. co-payments are scheduled to start rising again from 1 January 2030.
Explanatory memorandum ↗Legislative route
The bill was formally presented to the chamber and read a first time, which starts its parliamentary journey.
Introduced and read a first time
A minister or sponsoring member moved the second reading, opening the main debate on the bill's purpose and principles.
Second reading moved
Referred to Committee (12/06/2024): Senate Community Affairs Legislation Committee; Committee report (24/06/2024)
Referred to committee
APH bill page notesThe bill reached this recorded parliamentary step.
The chamber agreed to the bill at second reading, meaning it accepted the bill in principle and allowed it to continue.
Second reading agreed to
The chamber agreed to the bill at third reading, which completed passage through that chamber.
Third reading agreed to
The bill was formally presented to the chamber and read a first time, which starts its parliamentary journey.
Introduced and read a first time
A minister or sponsoring member moved the second reading, opening the main debate on the bill's purpose and principles.
Second reading moved
The bill reached this recorded parliamentary step.
The chamber agreed to the bill at second reading, meaning it accepted the bill in principle and allowed it to continue.
Second reading agreed to
The chamber agreed to the bill at third reading, which completed passage through that chamber.
Third reading agreed to
Both houses passed the bill in the same form, completing parliamentary passage.
Finally passed both Houses
The Governor-General gave Royal Assent, turning the bill into an Act.
Key criticism
The main criticism was that the package could squeeze independent community pharmacies, especially in small towns, by cutting revenue and pushing more stores to sell out to large chains. That stronger case against the bill was mainly raised by Bob Katter, while the Coalition still backed the bill but said the government’s poor consultation had created avoidable risks for pharmacy viability.
Opposition to the bill itself was limited, with most criticism aimed at pharmacy impacts and the government’s rollout.
Risk to independent pharmacies
Critics argued the changes would reduce owner-operator pharmacy income, force some local pharmacies to close or sell, and leave more of the market in the hands of large chains, especially hurting smaller regional communities.
Poor consultation and rollout risk
Coalition speakers said the bill was a corrective response after the government mishandled 60-day dispensingA pharmacy policy change that lets some patients get a longer supply of certain medicines in one prescription, which critics say affected pharmacy income., arguing pharmacists should have been consulted earlier and that the earlier approach had put rural and regional pharmacy access at risk.
Savings may be too small
Some supporters said the bill did not go far enough because it mainly freezes future PBSThe government scheme that subsidises medicines so patients pay less than the full price. price rises rather than cutting medicine prices more substantially, leaving broader health costs still high for patients.
Further sources
Votes
The bill passed both chambers on the voices. The counted divisions below were about amendments or procedure, not final passage.
House agreed to the bill's third reading on the voices, so there is no list of individual Aye and No votes for final passage in that chamber.
Passed on the voices
In a voice vote, members call out Aye or No and the presiding officer judges which side has it. Individual names are only recorded if a formal division is called.
Senate agreed to the bill's third reading on the voices, so there is no list of individual Aye and No votes for final passage in that chamber.
Passed on the voices
In a voice vote, members call out Aye or No and the presiding officer judges which side has it. Individual names are only recorded if a formal division is called.
Recorded amendment and procedural votes grouped by chamber. Expand a vote to see the party breakdown.
House
Defeated 58 to 82. Support came from Liberal Party and Nationals. Opposition came from Labor and Greens. Minor-party and independent votes were split.
The amendment was defeated, so the bill’s second reading proceeded without the added criticism or endorsement statement.
Senate
Defeated 28 to 35. Support came from Liberal Party and Nationals. Opposition came from Labor and Greens. Minor-party and independent votes were split.
The amendment was defeated, so the bill was read a second time without the added statement.
These are amendment votes, not the final passage vote on the bill itself. The bill passed both chambers on the voices.
Parliamentary debate
Start here — lead voices
Mark Butler strongly supports the bill, saying it will make medicines cheaper, improve patient access, and provide more sustainable funding for community pharmacies.
Read in Hansard ↗Katter opposes the bill because he says it will cut pharmacists' income, force many owner-operator pharmacies to close, and ultimately hand more of the market to large chains and reduce competition.
Read in Hansard ↗Webster says the coalition will support the bill because it delivers funding for community pharmacies and cheaper medicines, but she argues the package was forced by coalition advocacy after Labor mishandled 60-day dispensingA pharmacy policy change that lets some patients get a longer supply of certain medicines in one prescription, which critics say affected pharmacy income. and initially threatened pharmacy viability.
Read in Hansard ↗Chisholm strongly supports the bill, saying it will make medicines cheaper, improve pharmacy funding, and extend more equitable access to PBSThe government scheme that subsidises medicines so patients pay less than the full price. medicines across the country.
Read in Hansard ↗All speeches by bloc
3 speakers · 3 support
“That is exactly what we are doing: we will make medicines cheaper on every script at every pharmacy and in every community, as we phase out the measure that only benefits some.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“That is exactly what we are doing: we will make medicines cheaper on every script at every pharmacy and in every community, as we phase out the measure that currently only benefits some.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“This bill means all Australians will have more equitable access to cheaper medicines. As a pharmacist, a local MP and an assistant health minister, I commend the bill.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
3 speakers · 3 support
“Here we are today endorsing $26.5 billion in funding over five years through the Eighth Community Pharmacy Agreement, including a $3 billion funding boost secured through recent negotiations. The coalition will support this bill because it is the result of our strong advocacy on behalf of Australia's community pharmacy sector, which provides critical primary care to our communities.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“However, the coalition will support this bill, because we support the community pharmacy sector, because the community pharmacy sector provides critical primary care to Australians at the coalface. But we put on the record that these measures came about only because the government has botched its policy implementation and put Australians' primary care and their health care at risk.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“However, the coalition will support this bill because of the result of our strong advocacy on behalf of the Australian community pharmacy sector, which provides critical primary care for our community. But we put it on the record that this has only resulted because the government botched the implementation of their 60-day policy and put Australians' access to primary care at risk.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
5 speakers · 5 support
“This bill will go some way to addressing that but it does not go far enough. The Greens believe that the PBS should have sufficient investment to make approved medicines, drugs and treatment options accessible for everyone. Nobody should be prevented from getting the medicines they need because they don't have the money in their pocket.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“So I say to the government: while the Greens are supporting this legislation, this should be seen as a very preliminary step in what needs to be done to make the provision of essential health care more available and more affordable for millions of Australians—in fact, for all Australians.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“So, while this bill does help some in the community with the freezing of the indexation of costs, when it comes to medicines, it is already pretty bloody expensive to even get the prescription in the first place.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“I reiterate also that we will be supporting this bill today. Anything that keeps the price of medicines under control is a really important part of the tenor of our community. It is an important time, in a cost-of-living crisis, for us to have cheaper medicines.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
“The Greens will be supporting this bill.”Read the full speech in Hansard ↗
1 speaker · 2 contributions · 1 oppose
Hansard records 2 separate contributions by Bob Katter on this bill. They are grouped here so the speaker is listed once.
Second reading speech
Katter opposes the bill because he says it will cut pharmacists' income, force many owner-operator pharmacies to close, and ultimately hand more of the market to large chains and reduce competition. He argues the consumer savings are small and the long-term effect will be an oligopoly that hurts small towns and communities.
“So, if you're going to halve the income for pharmacists—some of the most highly respected people in our society—who's going to benefit from that? Is the consumer going to benefit? To some degree, yes. But it's a very small degree to which the consumer is going to benefit. Who benefits? Well, if there are a whole lot of the owner-operator pharmacies going broke then of course it's the big two who benefit—here we go again! It's Woolworths and Coles. And now we've got the two giants, Terry White and—the second company is eluding me at the present moment. Those two companies are on 42 per cent of the market now.”Read this contribution in Hansard ↗
Second reading speech
Bob Katter opposes the bill, saying it will halve owner-operator pharmacists' income and force many to sell out to big chains like Chemist Warehouse or Terry White. He argues it would destroy independent pharmacies and hand the sector to large corporate operators.
“Coming back to the pharmacies, in this case, you halved the income of owner-operator pharmacists. So they're going to go broke, and who is going to take their place? The big two. And your spokesman in the Senate was so incredibly stupid as to let the cat out of the bag. She said: 'Oh, we haven't had time to discuss it with the Pharmacy Guild, but we have discussed it with Chemist Warehouse.' I bet you did. I bet Chemist Warehouse discussed it with you.”Read this contribution in Hansard ↗
Record
House · Introduced and read a first time
Introduced
The bill was formally presented to the chamber and read a first time, which starts its parliamentary journey.
House · Second reading moved
Second reading opened
A minister or sponsoring member moved the second reading, opening the main debate on the bill's purpose and principles.
House · Second reading debate
Second reading debate
The bill reached this recorded parliamentary step.
House · Second reading agreed to
Second reading agreed
The chamber agreed to the bill at second reading, meaning it accepted the bill in principle and allowed it to continue.
House · Third reading agreed to
Third reading agreed
The chamber agreed to the bill at third reading, which completed passage through that chamber.
Senate · Introduced and read a first time
Introduced
The bill was formally presented to the chamber and read a first time, which starts its parliamentary journey.
Senate · Second reading moved
Second reading opened
A minister or sponsoring member moved the second reading, opening the main debate on the bill's purpose and principles.
Senate · Second reading debate
Second reading debate
The bill reached this recorded parliamentary step.
Senate · Second reading agreed to
Second reading agreed
The chamber agreed to the bill at second reading, meaning it accepted the bill in principle and allowed it to continue.
Senate · Third reading agreed to
Third reading agreed
The chamber agreed to the bill at third reading, which completed passage through that chamber.
Parliament · Finally passed both Houses
Passed both houses
Both houses passed the bill in the same form, completing parliamentary passage.
Assent · Assent
Assent
The Governor-General gave Royal Assent, turning the bill into an Act.
Senate Community Affairs Legislation Committee; Committee report (24/06/2024)
Referred to committee
Referred to Committee (12 June 2024): Senate Community Affairs Legislation Committee; Committee report (24 June 2024)
APH bill page notes
