AMWG Communique for Meeting on 28 October 2014

Page last updated: 2 January 2015

AMWG Meeting:

The third meeting of the reinvigorated AMWG occurred on 28 October 2014.

Attendees:

Attendees included co-Chairs: Mr David Learmonth (Deputy Secretary of Department of Health (DOH)) and Dr Martin Cross (Chair of Medicines Australia (MA)); representatives from the MA secretariat; industry and the Pharmaceutical Benefits Division of DOH.

Purpose:

The purpose of the meeting was to update the AMWG on progress against the work?streams.

1.    Post-market reviews

2.    Managed Access Programme (formerly Managed Entry Scheme)

3.    Section 99ACB of the National Health Act

4.    Transparency of PBS processes

Progress:

Medicines Australia and DOH tabled a report of the status of progress of the AMWG against each topic.

The AMWG sub-group provided verbal reports to the AMWG on the progress and achievements to date.

Post Market reviews:

Work on a revised post-market review framework is nearing completion.

Managed Access Programme

There have been constructive discussions to clarify how the MAP has been used in the past and how it can be adapted to better facilitate access to high clinical need medicines in the future.  Substantive progress has been made. 

99ACB

A tripartite meeting between Generic Medicines Industry Association, Medicines Australia and Health was agreed for 14 November 2014. 

Transparency

Medicines Australia and Health have agreed to develop a road map of transparency activities and projects and that the first topic should include improvement to the information available to consumers. 

The progress update will be reported to the Minister for Health in December 2014 and extensions to the completion dates for MAP, 99ACB and Transparency will be sought.

Communication:

The AMWG will publish regular communiques to provide updates on progress following each AMWG meeting.

PDF version of Acess to Medicines Working Group October 2014 (PDF 242 KB)