Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has announced a significant reduction in prescription medicine prices—his Government’s second cut to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) co-payment—which will bring significant relief to Australian patients.
The announcement was made during the opening plenary session of the Australian Pharmacy Professional Conference and Trade Exhibition (APP2025) on the Gold Coast.
It means that from 1 January 2026, the maximum PBS co-payment for general patients will fall from $31.60 to $25, helping more than 400,000 Australians every week to better afford the medicines they need. The change will save patients up to $6.60 per script and put $689 million back in their pockets over four years.
“This is a significant step towards relieving the financial burden of ill health and chronic conditions and making sure people can get the medicine they need,” said Pharmacy Guild National President Professor Trent Twomey. “It’s been 20 years since prescription costs were this low, and I’d like to thank Prime Minister Albanese for his vision on delivering this change.”
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese shakes hands with Prof. Trent Twomey
The Guild has long called for more affordable medicines and recently joined forces with a coalition of more than 20 health and community organisations to push for action. This included the Australian Patients Association, Asthma Australia, Family Planning Alliance Australia, QENDO, Australian Association for Adolescent Health, Wounds Australia, Parents & Citizens Queensland, the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia, and Advanced Pharmacy Australia.
Recent independent research conducted by Insightfully shows that cost remains a key barrier to medicine adherence. Up to 1 in 5 Australians have skipped or delayed filling a script in the past three years due to cost. The situation is worse in regional areas, rising to 1 in 3.
Minister for Health and Aged Care Hon Mark Butler MP, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Pharmacy Guild National President Trent Twomey speaking with the media after the announcement
“Every day, community pharmacists hear from patients who are making difficult choices between filling prescriptions and paying for other essentials like rent and groceries,” said Professor Twomey. “This change will make a real difference for those managing chronic conditions with multiple regular prescriptions.”
This latest co-payment reduction builds on the Albanese Government’s 2023 cut from $42.50 to $30—the first time in the PBS’s 75-year history that the price had been lowered. Without these two changes, the maximum general co-payment would have reached $50 by 2026.
