A new treatment for a common painful condition and two other drugs will be made cheaper to improve thousands of Australian women’s lives.
About 8500 Australian women are expected to benefit annually when Ryeqo is listed on the pharmaceutical benefits scheme on May 1.
The drug is a new endometriosis treatment option for people who have experienced moderate to severe pain and cannot get adequate relief from other hormonal treatments and painkillers, according to the federal government.
About one in seven Australian women suffer from endometriosis, where tissue similar to the lining of the womb grows elsewhere in the body, affecting fertility and causing debilitating pain.
Symptoms are variable and contribute to an average delay in diagnosis of six-and-a-half years, according to Endometriosis Australia.
New subsidies will also cut the costs of a progestogen-only contraceptive pill and an IVF hormone therapy.
Women with low levels of specific hormones will be able to access Pergoveris for $32 per treatment cycle from their first IVF cycle, rather than having to wait for multiple failures.
Each unsubsidised cycle costs about $3500.
Helana Shehadeh used Pergoveris during her second IVF cycle in 2023, which resulted in the birth of baby Zayn.
“Anyone who has been through IVF understands the agony of multiple cycles,” she said.
“Earlier access to this fertility treatment will alleviate some of the burden for women undergoing IVF.”
The announcement was welcomed amid Australia’s birth rate falling to a record-low 1.5 babies per woman.
“The cost of assisted reproduction remains a major barrier for many families, particularly amid the ongoing cost-of-living crisis,” Fertility Society of Australia and New Zealand president Petra Wale said
“Fewer financial and logistical hurdles mean more families can focus on what truly matters – having a baby.”
The listings would improve the quality of life for hundreds of thousands of Australian women, Health Minister Mark Butler said.
“Women have asked government to take their health care seriously, and we have listened,” he said.
“These listings could save women and their families thousands of dollars across their lifetimes.”
He dismissed criticism about delayed action after a government advisory committee recommended in March 2024 that Ryeqo be added to the subsidy scheme.
“They’ve all been dealt with expeditiously,” Mr Butler told Weekend Today.
“Over the nine years of (the coalition) government, not a single new pill, not a single endometriosis treatment, not a single menopause treatment (was added).”
The opposition said it was not good enough to leave women waiting for more than a year for “potentially life-changing medications”.
“Prioritising women’s health remains a top priority of the coalition, as we remain strongly committed to our longstanding policy of listing all PBAC-recommended medicines on the PBS, and in a timely manner,” opposition health spokeswoman Senator Anne Ruston said.
The price of a contraceptive pill used by about 80,000 women will also be slashed.
Under the PBS, the annual cost of Slinda will drop from about $320 to about $94 for general patients or $22 for concession card holders.
The absence of estrogen in the pill makes it particularly suitable for older women, smokers, women at increased risk of blood clots and those who suffer migraine attacks.
