Health and Ageing
Addressing Indigenous Needs — combating petrol sniffing — additional funding
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | 3.0 | 3.0 | - | - |
| Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs | 1.5 | 2.0 | - | - |
| Total | 4.5 | 5.0 | - | - |
The Government will provide an additional $9.5 million over two years to further reduce the incidence of petrol sniffing in Central Desert Indigenous communities in collaboration with State and Territory governments.
This funding includes $6.0 million to the Department of Health and Ageing to support a wider roll-out of the non-sniffable OPAL petrol to all Indigenous communities, roadhouses and pastoral stations within the Central Desert area.
An additional $0.5 million will be provided to the Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs in 2005-06 to support incentives for States and Territories to crackdown on trafficking petrol into ‘dry’ communities and to implement effective legislation. A further $3.0 million over two years will be provided to support diversionary and capacity building activities.
Further information can be found in the joint press release of 12 September 2005 issued by the Ministers for Health and Ageing, and Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs.
Aged care — funding for improved information technology, financial reporting and training
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | - | - | - | - |
The Government provided $152.0 million in 2004-05 to make a one-off payment of $1,000 per resident to residential aged care providers. This funding will enable aged care providers to take advantage of new technologies, improve business practices, and increase staff training in areas such as dementia care. The enhanced use of new information technology will reduce the amount of time aged care staff spend on paper work, therefore increasing the amount of time able to be spent with residents.
Further information can be found in the press release of 27 June 2005 issued by the Minister for Ageing.
Aged Care — new scheme to protect accommodation bonds and enhance prudential arrangements
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | 2.7 | 2.7 | 3.0 | - |
| Related capital ($m) | ||||
| Department of Health and Ageing | 0.2 | - | - | - |
The Government will provide $8.5 million over three years to establish a new scheme to strengthen the protection of aged care residents’ accommodation bonds and to enhance prudential regulatory arrangements. This measure includes $0.2 million in capital funding in 2005-06 for the development of an IT system.
The new scheme will ensure that residents’ outstanding bonds will be repaid in full in the event that a provider defaults as a result of bankruptcy or insolvency. While the Government will step in to repay bonds in the first instance, any payments will be recovered from the defaulting provider and, if necessary, through a levy on all aged care providers who hold bonds. Any possible Government payments under the guarantee scheme and subsequent levies are unquantifiable at this stage.
The Government will also enhance the prudential regulatory arrangements that currently apply to residential aged care providers holding bonds. The new standards will focus on providing a more comprehensive picture of the current bond holdings of providers and their ability to refund those bonds, and provide residents, prospective residents, and their families with improved information about the financial stability of a provider.
Further information can be found in the press release of 15 September 2005 issued by the Minister for Ageing.
Assisted Reproductive Technologies Review Committee — funding
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | 0.5 | - | - | - |
The Government will provide $0.5 million in 2005-06 for the Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART) Review Committee to independently review the clinical and cost effectiveness of ART. The review process is expected to be completed by the end of 2005-06 and the findings of the review will help to inform future policy for ART.
Further information can be found in the press releases of 10 May and 4 July 2005 issued by the Minister for Health and Ageing.
Commonwealth Carelink Programme — continued funding
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | - | - | - | - |
The Government will provide $18.2 million in 2007-08 to continue the Commonwealth Carelink Programme, which provides a single point of contact for people to access information about community services including eligibility requirements.
The measure will align funding for this programme with other related community care and support programmes to enable the Government to enter into three-year funding agreements with service providers. This will allow for a comprehensive review of all the programmes in 2007-08. This approach is consistent with the 2004 report, A New Strategy for Community Care — The Way Forward.
Provision for this funding in 2007-08 has already been included in the forward estimates.
See also the related expense measures Dementia and challenging behaviours initiative — continued funding, Staying at home respite for carers — continued funding and Support for carers — continued funding.
Community Pharmacy Agreement
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Veterans’ Affairs | 3.0 | -12.4 | -12.5 | -13.3 |
| Medicare Australia | 2.7 | 2.0 | 1.9 | 2.0 |
| Department of Health and Ageing | -7.7 | -63.9 | -55.8 | -65.6 |
| Total | -2.0 | -74.3 | -66.4 | -76.9 |
| Related capital ($m) | ||||
| Medicare Australia | 0.8 | - | - | - |
The Fourth Community Pharmacy Agreement, which will run from 1 December 2005 to 30 June 2010, is expected to achieve net savings of $306.8 million over the life of the agreement (including savings of $88.0 million in 2009-10).
The savings from changes to pharmacy and wholesaler remuneration are predominantly driven by reductions in the mark-up on the price of medicines for wholesalers. Part of these savings have been redirected into an increased dispensing fee for pharmacists and a Community Service Obligation funding pool which will help ensure access to the full range of PBS medicines in all parts of Australia.
Further information can be found in the press release of 8 November 2005 issued by the Minister for Health and Ageing.
Dementia and challenging behaviours initiative — continued funding
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | - | - | - | - |
The Government will provide $23.8 million in 2007-08 to continue the increased provision of respite care for carers of people with dementia and challenging behaviour.
The measure will align funding for this programme with other related community care and support programmes to enable the Government to enter into three-year funding agreements with service providers. This will allow for a comprehensive review of all the programmes in 2007-08. This approach is consistent with the 2004 report, A New Strategy for Community Care — The Way Forward.
This measure involves funding of $23.8 million in 2007-08. Provision for this funding has already been included in the forward estimates.
See also the related expense measures Commonwealth Carelink Programme — continued funding, Staying at home respite for carers — continued funding and Support for carers — continued funding.
Medicare Australia — additional funding
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | 5.4 | 3.2 | 3.4 | 3.3 |
The Government will provide $15.3 million over four years to Medicare Australia to fund the maintenance of two Medicare offices in Rosebud and Fountaingate in Victoria, support the introduction of extended trading hours, and facilitate the organisation’s transition from the Health Insurance Commission to Medicare Australia.
Medicare Benefits Schedule — new and revised listings
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | 10.9 | 16.7 | 17.6 | 18.8 |
The Government will provide $63.9 million over four years for new and revised listings on the Medicare Benefits Schedule added since the 2005-06 Budget.
The amendments to the schedule include:
- new items and a home visit loading for optometrists;
- new and revised items for pelvic floor surgery for prolapse in women;
- new items for sentinel node biopsy;
- revised items for intensive care surgery;
- a new item for Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) serology testing; and
- new and revised items for Human Papillomavirus (HPV) testing.
Further information can be found in the summary of changes included
in the
1 November 2005 Medicare Benefits Schedule issued by the Department
of Health and Ageing.
National Health and Medical Research Council — transition to a new governance structure
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | 0.4 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 |
| National Health and Medical Research Council | 0.3 | - | - | - |
| Total | 0.7 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 |
The Government will provide $2.1 million over four years for the establishment of the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) as a statutory agency from 1 July 2006, in response to recent reviews of the NHMRC’s operations.
This initiative will improve reporting and accountability of the NHMRC to the Government, and will provide the NHMRC with financial and operational autonomy, while allowing for the continuation of its key functions of research and advice on both health and ethical issues.
Further information can be found in the press release of 7 September 2005 issued by the Minister for Health and Ageing.
National Immunisation Programme — new and revised vaccinations
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | 1.2 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
The Government will provide $2.1 million over four years for changes to the National Immunisation Programme made since the 2005-06 Budget.
The adjustments to the National Immunisation Programme include the addition of a Hepatitis A vaccine for at risk Indigenous children from 1 November 2005 and a change to the delivery of the adolescent diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis vaccination in South Australia.
Further information can be found in the press release of 28 June 2005 issued by the Minister for Health and Ageing.
Pandemic influenza — fast tracking pandemic influenza vaccine production
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | 4.9 | - | - | - |
The Government will provide Australian pharmaceutical company CSL Ltd with $4.9 million in 2005-06 to fast track production of pandemic influenza vaccine for Australia. This funding will assist in bringing forward the completion of the pandemic influenza vaccine development programme by 18 months to August 2006.
The funding will enable CSL Ltd to make necessary alterations to its existing manufacturing capacity and bring forward the commencement of clinical trials of a prototype pandemic influenza vaccine for the current H5N1 influenza strain.
Further information can be found in the press release of 22 July 2005 issued by the Minister for Health and Ageing.
Pandemic influenza preparedness — enhancement
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | 6.6 | 2.7 | 1.8 | 1.6 |
| Related capital ($m) | ||||
| Department of Health and Ageing | 0.5 | 1.7 | 0.9 | - |
The Government will provide $15.9 million over four years (including $3.1 million of capital funding for information technology enhancements) to further enhance Australia’s preparedness for a potential pandemic influenza.
The additional funding consists of:
- $5.8 million for communications including consumer research, material development, stakeholder forums and continuation of the pandemic influenza hotline, for use prior to and during a pandemic;
- $5.6 million for developing and strengthening Australia’s influenza surveillance networks including extending the national sentinel surveillance system and the National Sentinel Influenza Coordinators Network of the State and Territory health departments;
- $0.4 million for initiatives to monitor people who are home quarantined; and
- $4.1 million for a major national simulation exercise in October 2006 to test health system and broader preparedness and response to a simulated pandemic influenza outbreak.
- information can be found in the press release of 11 December 2005 issued by the Minister of Health and Ageing.
Pandemic influenza preparedness — Office of Health Protection
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | 3.2 | 7.4 | 6.9 | 7.0 |
| Related capital ($m) | ||||
| Department of Health and Ageing | 2.9 | - | - | - |
The Government will provide $27.3 million over four years (including $2.9 million of capital funding for office fit-out costs) for the creation of the Office of Health Protection (OHP), a specialist division within the Department of Health and Ageing. The OHP’s role will be to help ensure Australia’s health system has coordinated arrangements to respond effectively to national health emergencies, including infectious disease outbreaks, terrorism and national disasters.
The funding will provide for strengthened biosecurity capacity, enhanced disease monitoring, stronger human security links within government and increased capacity to coordinate health related pandemic planning and action. Specific tasks of the OHP will include managing the national medical stockpile, upgrading the National Incident Room, and developing and improving business continuity planning, surveillance systems, laboratory capacity and communication strategies.
Further information can be found in the press release of 11 December 2005 issued by the Minister of Health and Ageing.
Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme — extend the listing of Arimidex® (anastrozole)
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | 1.6 | 7.3 | 14.7 | 20.8 |
| Department of Veterans’ Affairs | 0.1 | 0.3 | 0.7 | 1.0 |
| Medicare Australia | .. | .. | .. | .. |
| Total | 1.7 | 7.6 | 15.4 | 21.8 |
The Government will, from 1 December 2005, extend the listing of Arimidex® (anastrozole) on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS), at a cost of $46.7 million over four years.
Anastrozole is a drug used in the treatment of post-menopausal women with hormone dependent breast cancer. The PBS listing of anastrozole was previously restricted to the treatment of advanced (metastatic) breast cancer and early (adjuvant) breast cancer in those women who cannot take tamoxifen. The extended listing will make anastrozole available for the treatment of early breast cancer in all post‑menopausal women. This will help reduce the risk associated with tumour recurrence and the development of a new primary breast cancer.
The cost to the Government of providing Arimidex® will be $200.19 per script. General consumers will pay a $28.60 co-payment per script and concession card holders will pay a $4.60 co-payment per script.
Further information can be found in the press release of 21 October 2005 issued by the Minister for Health and Ageing.
Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme — extend the listing of Eloxatin® (oxaliplatin)
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | 21.5 | 31.7 | 36.1 | 39.9 |
| Department of Veterans’ Affairs | 0.9 | 1.3 | 1.5 | 1.7 |
| Medicare Australia | .. | .. | .. | .. |
| Total | 22.3 | 33.0 | 37.6 | 41.6 |
The Government will extend the listing of Eloxatin® (oxaliplatin) from 1 October 2005 on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, at a cost of $134.6 million over four years.
Oxaliplatin, a drug used in the treatment of colon cancer and previously restricted to stage IV (metastatic) colo-rectal cancer patients, will now be available for treatment of stage III (adjuvant) colon cancer. This will help reduce the risk of tumour recurrence and subsequent progression to stage IV colon cancer.
The cost to the Government of providing Eloxatin® will be approximately $1,327 per cycle. On average, there are ten cycles per year. General consumers will pay a $28.60 co-payment per cycle and concession card holders will pay a $4.60 co-payment per cycle.
Further information can be found in the press release of 1 September 2005 issued by the Minister for Health and Ageing.
Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme — increased PBS subsidy for Lipitor® (atorvastatin)
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | 35.5 | 85.2 | 97.3 | 111.3 |
| Department of Veterans’ Affairs | 2.1 | 4.4 | 5.1 | 5.9 |
| Total | 37.6 | 89.6 | 102.5 | 117.2 |
The Government will pay an increased price for Lipitor® (atorvastatin) on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) at a cost of $346.9 million over four years. The Government has accepted the recommendation of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee that atorvastatin is more effective at lowering cholesterol than other available statins, warranting a higher price that needs to be met by a commensurately greater PBS subsidy. The cost to the Government of providing Lipitor® is $63.57 per script. General consumers will pay a $28.60 co-payment per script and concession card holders will pay a $4.60 co-payment per script.
Further information can be found in the press release of 15 July 2005 issued by the Minister for Health and Ageing.
Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme — listing of Inspra® (Eplerenone)
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | 0.6 | 2.7 | 5.2 | 7.5 |
| Department of Veterans’ Affairs | .. | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.3 |
| Medicare Australia | .. | .. | .. | .. |
| Total | 0.6 | 2.8 | 5.4 | 7.9 |
The Government will, from 1 February 2006, list Inspra® on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, at an estimated cost of $16.8 million over four years.
Inspra® is expected to reduce the chance of patients having a subsequent heart attack after an initial heart attack, decrease the number of hospital admissions for the treatment of heart failure, and lower the risk of death from a cardiovascular event.
The cost to the Government of providing Inspra® will be $114.60 per script. General consumers will pay $28.60 co-payment per script and concession card holders will pay a $4.60 co-payment per script.
Further information can be found in the press release of 7 December 2005 issued by the Minister for Health and Ageing.
Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme — minor new listings
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | 3.2 | 3.7 | 4.0 | 4.3 |
The Government will provide $15.3 million over four years for minor new listings on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme since the 2005-06 Budget.
The minor new listings are a mix of drugs that have been listed at either no additional cost to the Budget (because they displace existing drugs) or at an estimated cost of less than $10 million per annum. The drug listings that have a minor cost to the Government include Ritalin® for the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and Modavigil® for the treatment of narcolepsy. However, the majority of new listings since the 2005-06 Budget are cost neutral as they simply increase the variety of brands or strengths of existing drugs. There was no financial impact from these new listings in the 2004-05 financial year.
Further information can be found in the press releases of 1 August 2005 issued by the Minister for Health and Ageing.
Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme — retain listing of calcium tablets
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | 0.3 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 0.7 |
| Department of Veterans’ Affairs | .. | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| Medicare Australia | .. | .. | .. | .. |
| Total | 0.3 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 0.8 |
The Government will retain calcium tablets on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme for patients with hyperphosphataemia due to chronic renal failure, at a cost of $2.5 million over four years.
Further information can be found in the press release of 28 October 2005 issued by the Minister for Health and Ageing.
Private Health Insurance — deferral of reinsurance reforms
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | -1.7 | -4.5 | -0.4 | -0.3 |
The Government will defer introduction of the 2003-04 Budget measure Private Health Insurance Premiums — further measures to contain future increases, leading to savings of $7.0 million over four years.
Current reinsurance arrangements will be maintained pending the outcome of a review of the suitability of these reforms.
Further information can be found in the Private Health Insurance Circular of 26 September 2005 issued by the Department of Health and Ageing.
Private Health Insurance — development of options to increase competitiveness and coverage
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | 0.4 | - | - | - |
The Government will provide $0.4 million in 2005-06 to the Department of Health and Ageing to develop options for increasing the competitiveness of private health insurance products and coverage of private health insurance. This will include modelling the impact of these options on premiums, policy holders and costs to government, and identifying required changes to the current reinsurance arrangements.
Current reinsurance arrangements will be maintained pending the outcome of the development of options. Further information can be found in the measure Private Health Insurance — deferral of reinsurance reforms.
Further information can be found in the Private Health Insurance Circular of 26 September 2005 issued by the Department of Health and Ageing.
Private Health Insurance Ombudsman — increased powers
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Private Health Insurance Ombudsman | - | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
| Related revenue ($m) | ||||
| Private Health Insurance Ombudsman | - | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
Additional funding of $0.6 million over three years will be provided to the Private Health Insurance Ombudsman to mediate complaints and contract disputes involving providers of privately insured health services as well as health funds, to ensure that consumer entitlements are protected.
This funding will be provided through an increase in the private health insurance complaints levy paid by private health insurance funds under the Private Health Insurance Complaints Levy Act 1995.
Further information can be found in the press release of 9 November 2005 issued by the Minister for Health and Ageing.
Ronald McDonald Beach House — contribution
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | 0.2 | - | - | - |
The Government will provide $150,000 in 2005-06 to help fund the establishment of a Ronald McDonald Beach House in Forster, New South Wales. Ronald McDonald Beach Houses provide free holiday accommodation for seriously ill or terminally ill children and their families or for families that have lost a child to serious illness.
Further information can be found in the press release of 22 August 2005 issued by the Federal Member for Paterson.
Staying at home respite for carers — continued funding
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | - | - | - | - |
The Government will provide $30.0 million over two years from 2006-07 to continue to provide respite care through Commonwealth Carer Respite Centres and through respite services for carers of people with dementia.
The measure will align funding for this programme with other related community care and support programmes to enable the Government to enter into three-year funding agreements with service providers. This will allow for a comprehensive review of all programmes in 2007-08. This approach is consistent with the 2004 report, A New Strategy for Community Care — The Way Forward.
This measure involves funding of $14.9 million in 2006-07 and $15.2 million in 2007-08. Provision for this funding has already been included in the forward estimates.
See also the related expense measures Commonwealth Carelink Programme — continued funding, Dementia and challenging behaviours initiative — continued funding and Support for carers — continued funding.
Support for carers — continued funding
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Department of Health and Ageing | - | - | - | - |
The Government will provide $48.3 million over two years from 2006-07 to continue to provide support for carers through the Additional Support for Carers of Older Australians Programme, the More Support for Ageing Carers of People with Disabilities Programme and the More Support for Carers of People with Dementia Programme.
This measure provides support for carers of older Australians, including those with dementia, and for ageing carers of people with disabilities through the provision of respite care and other services to support them in their caring role.
The measure will align funding for these programmes with other related community care and support programmes to enable the Government to enter into three-year funding agreements with service providers. This will allow for a comprehensive review of all programmes in 2007-08. This approach is consistent with the 2004 report, A New Strategy for Community Care — The Way Forward.
This measure involves funding of $23.9 million in 2006-07 and $24.4 million in 2007-08. Provision for this funding has already been included in the forward estimates.
See also the related expense measures Commonwealth Carelink Programme — continued funding, Dementia and challenging behaviours initiative — continued funding and Staying at home respite for carers — continued funding.