The approaching major change in Australia’s PBS wholesaling arrangements

In this week's episode, the focus is on the latest example of no progress on reform, the mindset and intransigence it reveals, the repeated pattern, and the early evidence that it would always end this way. Can it be an opportunity? Next week's Budget is upon us, and the discussion focuses on what to look for, that just because it is not in there, does not mean it is not in there, and why gaining any cut-through will be a real challenge.

Officials will use participation as evidence that the process was inclusive and broadly supported. That claim provides procedural cover for inaction, allowing officials to present incremental adjustments as stakeholder-supported reform. The Delphi studies will be weaponised as a durable rhetorical shield against renewed scrutiny. There are options.

Victoria has become the latest Australian jurisdiction to fund BEXSERO, the meningococcal B vaccine produced by GSK, joining South Australia, Queensland and the Northern Territory in offering state-supported access while a national roll‑out remains off the table.

Lilly Australia is celebrating 150 years of the company's pivotal contribution to developing medicines by partnering with Vivid Sydney to bring ideas about the future of healthcare to the festival program.

Announced in 2021 and now running into 2027, the review has produced 9 research papers to date, including 6 by the two organisations leading the current Delphi studies. Is the review being restarted as an internal government process?

The Australian company has been chosen to feature in 'Monarchy and Democracy: A History of Leadership', published by the History of Parliament in partnership with St James’s House, to mark a century of royal and parliamentary life.

Scientists at QIMR Berghofer have unveiled an artificial intelligence screening tool that uses advanced spatial biology analysis to help pathologists detect hidden genetic markers of cancer in standard patient tissue samples.

The company has opened applications for the 2026 Moderna Australia Fellowship, a program that will fund and mentor early-career Australian scientists for two years as they pursue mRNA research and innovation.

They are anonymous with no passwords or barriers to participation, and given the significance of the process to Australia's public health system, this publication believes a closed, targeted process involving a select group of stakeholders is entirely inappropriate. Here are the links.

International comparisons might matter, but only if we employ them consistently. Why limit international comparisons, and why are officials redoing so much of what was already done by the formal review?

A Johnson & Johnson CAR-T therapy is now funded in Australia, almost exactly three years to the day after Health Minister Mark Butler acknowledged in response to questions about its availability that the country's use of health technology assessment is 'clunky' and responsible for preventable deaths.

La Trobe has responded by creating the Research and Engagement for Antimicrobial Resistance and Community Health initiative, known as REACH, to develop new ways to prevent and treat pathogenic bacteria, fungi, and viruses.

"We are seeking greater transparency of the protocol itself and the stakeholders that have been invited to participate, as there are inherent biases in an anonymous Delphi protocol that may undermine the intent of the original HTA Review recommendations," said the Medicines Australia chief executive.

“We acknowledge there are significant challenges involved in securing reimbursement for innovative medicines in Australia, and our focus in the near term is on enabling private access so patients are not left waiting without options," said Manny Simons, General Manager of Lilly Australia and New Zealand.

Specialised Therapeutics secured the rights to NIKTIMVO in Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore via a June 2025 agreement with Incyte. The company said it is exploring reimbursement through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.

The proposed new wording, if adopted, would add significant detail to the guidelines, but it is unlikely to satisfy change advocates.

We now have a non-transparent closed study involving an unidentified group of 'targeted' stakeholders to support a guideline review as an outcome of an implementation review of the initial review. You literally could not make it up.

The selective consultation on these actions was launched via targeted invitations to select stakeholders on the same day the Health Department opened public consultation on the draft patient engagement framework.

The conversation with the two leaders took place ahead of yesterday's official opening of UCB's new Australian headquarters in Melbourne, marking the 25th anniversary of its establishment in Australia.

Tokenistic characterisations of patient engagement are no substitute for listening and empowering. The risk of government funding organisations and how it can impact what they do, primarily because the government is just another vested interest.