Millions of Australians have today been saved from paying up to $5 extra for their essential medicines by Labor’s rejection of the Abbott Government’s PBS price hike.
In a clear breach of his election promise of no cuts to health the Abbott Government planned to increase co-payments for PBS drugs by $5 for general patients and 80¢ for concessional patients from 1 January 2015.
But the price hike was quietly shelved after Labor refused to support the legislation.
Unlike its deceitful plans to slide the GP Tax in via regulation, the one off price hike for medicines can only be introduced through legislation.
With Parliament not due to sit again until February, this means the hit to patients is now on hold, but make no mistake, Tony Abbott only abandoned this deceitful hit on patients because Labor forced him to.
For as long as the Abbott Government remains in office, it will seize any opportunity to hit patients with its PBS price hike and GP Tax.
Labor created Medicare and only a Labor Government can protect Medicare. Only Labor will ensure Australians are safe from Tony Abbott’s disastrous GP Tax and PBS price hikes.