• Home/
  • Reviews/
  • PBAC Advice Equitable Access To GLP 1 Obesity Treatments

Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) advice on equitable access to GLP-1 obesity treatments

Page last updated: 17 March 2026

Background

On 6 March 2025, the Minister for Health and Ageing and Minister for Disability and the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), the Hon Mark Butler MP, wrote to the PBAC Chair to request the committee’s advice on access to glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1) obesity treatments through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS). The Minister requested advice on the potential future PBS subsidy of obesity treatments, including the most appropriate patient populations, duration of therapy and place in therapy.

Minister Butler’s request included several key questions for PBAC:

  • Which Australian cohorts are most likely to benefit from potential availability of obesity medicines through the PBS?
  • Are obesity medicines effective as standalone therapies or best used in combination with other interventions, along with supporting models of care?
  • Are they most effectively used as the sole intervention, in association with bariatric surgery, or combination of options?
  • What is the optimal duration of subsidisation?

PBAC Advice

The PBAC provided its advice on equitable access to GLP-1 obesity treatments through the PBS at the November 2025 meeting. The PBAC outcome was published on 19 December 2025 and is available as part of the November 2025 PBAC outcomes.

The PBAC Minutes for this item are available below. Commercial-in-confidence information has been redacted.

On 15 December 2025, the PBAC Chair and Deputy Chair wrote to Minister Butler to provide a summary of the PBAC’s advice on equitable access to GLP-1 obesity treatments. A copy of the letter is available below.

At the November 2025 PBAC meeting, the PBAC also recommended the listing of semaglutide (Wegovy®) on the PBS for people with established cardiovascular disease and obesity. Please refer to the November 2025 semaglutide (Wegovy) Public Summary Document (PSD) for further information. For the latest information on the progress of this listing, please refer to the Medicines Status website.

Summary of PBAC Advice

The PBAC provided advice on priority groups to ensure equitable subsidised access to GLP-1s for the treatment of obesity. Based on current evidence, the PBAC considered this should include:

  • people with established cardiovascular disease
  • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients with obesity-related comorbidities
  • people with syndromic obesity
  • people with medication-induced obesity
  • patients requiring weight loss to be eligible for surgery.

The PBAC invited sponsor submissions for these populations, noting that any PBS listing would be subject to the legislative requirements to demonstrate clinical and cost-effectiveness through a sponsor-initiated submission.

The PBAC advised a slow and managed roll-out of access to PBS-subsidised GLP-1 treatments in the Australian health care system would help to manage leakage and uncertainties around long-term use and outcomes. The PBAC considered that there may be merit in broader subsidy of GLP-1s for early intervention and prevention of obesity-related comorbidities, but such subsidy would need to be established as a program outside of the PBS as it would be difficult to achieve a cost-effective price of providing obesity medicines for these broader purposes at this time.

The PBAC noted the rapid emergence of research in obesity treatments and real-world evidence in this area, which is expected to drive significant changes in cost, supply, dosing, and utilisation over coming years. The PBAC noted the importance of real-world data to inform effective, equitable, safe and cost-effective use of GLP-1s.

The PBAC considered that there was a need to improve access to non-pharmacological interventions, such as diet and physical activity support, and that digital models may provide an equitable avenue for broad access to these supports. The PBAC considered that there should not be any mandatory requirements for use of wraparound allied health services for PBS-subsidised access to GLP-1s, as this would create a barrier to accessing therapy, particularly for people who were already at higher risk of obesity and its associated comorbidities.

Summary of Consumer Input

The Department received 540 inputs through the Office of Health Technology Assessment Consultation Hub for the item on equitable access to GLP-1 obesity treatments, including from individuals who have used GLP-1s (459), other individual consumers (33), health care professionals (25) and organisations (23).

A plain language summary of inputs received through the Consultation Hub, prepared by Biotext Pty Ltd, is provided below.

Context for PBAC Advice

The Australian Government relies on advice from the PBAC when making decisions to list medicines on the PBS. The PBAC is not a Government committee. It was established and given functions under legislation made by the Australian Parliament to provide independent advice to Government about which medicines should be subsidised through the PBS. Its membership includes health sector professionals, health economists and consumer representatives. Most undertake work for the PBAC on top of their roles delivering healthcare in the Australian community. They have extensive experience assessing medicines and interpreting evidence from clinical studies and other sources.

The PBAC is required to assess how well new medicines work and how safe they are compared to existing care funded in Australia, and whether the benefits justify any additional costs to Australian taxpayers. Based on its assessment of the evidence and costs, the PBAC makes recommendations to the Government about which medicines should be subsidised through the PBS and under what circumstances. 

The PBAC’s consideration is generally initiated when the pharmaceutical company responsible for a medicine applies for PBS listing for specific conditions. This is because pharmaceutical companies usually hold the clinical and scientific data, pricing, and other information necessary to inform the assessment. Pharmaceutical companies also need to agree how medicines are listed on the PBS because this impacts how they supply the Australian market. Pharmaceutical companies are private entities and each company makes its own decisions about availability and pricing of its medicines, and whether it will apply for PBS listing.

PBAC recommendations are generally limited to where effectiveness and safety have been established in clinical trials funded by the supplying companies. Without an assessment of clinical evidence, it is not possible to be confident that the benefits of subsidising a medicine more broadly will outweigh potential harms, or that the medicine will perform as well as currently available therapies and treatment options.

Further information on the PBAC, including membership, meeting agendas and outcomes, is available on the PBAC website.

Previous PBAC consideration

There are three injectable medicines registered on the ARTG for weight management: tirzepatide (Mounjaro®), liraglutide (Saxenda® and other brands) and semaglutide (Wegovy®). The sponsors of tirzepatide and liraglutide have not made submissions to list these medicines on the PBS for the treatment of overweight/obesity.

The PBAC has twice considered submissions for semaglutide (Wegovy®) for the treatment of obesity but not recommended this medicine for PBS listing. While the PBAC recognised that this treatment has the potential to offer substantial benefits to patients experiencing severe obesity, the PBAC raised concerns about the clinical rationale for the patient cohorts that were proposed to receive subsidised access and the cost-effectiveness of the medicine at the requested price.

In November 2025, the PBAC recommended listing semaglutide (Wegovy®) on the PBS for people with established cardiovascular disease with obesity under certain circumstances, contingent upon a price reduction and risk sharing arrangement. For the latest information on the progress of this listing, please refer to the Medicines Status website.

Further information is available in the Public Summary Documents (PSDs) for these submissions, which set out the specific detail of the PBAC’s consideration and can be found by searching the product name.

A PBAC decision in relation to a submission for PBS listing does not necessarily represent a final PBAC view about the merits of the medicine or the circumstances in which it should be made available through the PBS.

Medicine shortages

Two GLP-1s are listed on the PBS for the treatment of type 2 diabetes, semaglutide (Ozempic®) and dulaglutide (Trulicity®). As of February 2026, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) advises that there are no shortages of any GLP-1 medication in Australia. New as well as existing patients can be prescribed GLP-1 medicines and access treatment. For more information on medicine shortages, including how these are being managed by the TGA, please go to the TGA Medicines Shortages website and search the medicine shortage reports database by the medicine name.

Access to allied health services for the management of chronic conditions

GP chronic condition management plans (GPCCMP) are available to patients with at least one medical condition that has been (or is likely to be) present for at least 6 months or is terminal. The GPCCMP is intended to support patients that would benefit from a structured approach to the management of their chronic condition, whether or not multidisciplinary care is required. There is no list of eligible conditions. GPs can refer patients with a GPCCMP for up to five individual Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) rebated allied health services per calendar year (10 services for patients of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent). Some patients may also be eligible for MBS rebated allied health services under an Eating Disorder Treatment and Management Plan (EDP) or Mental Health Treatment Plan.

Further information on GPCCMPs is available on the MBS Online (Note AN.0.47) which sets out the requirements for developing and reviewing GPCCMP and includes a series of frequently asked questions and case studies, including two case studies on the use of GPCCMP to support patients managing obesity.

Patients with type 2 diabetes may be eligible for group allied health services. Eligible patients can access group diabetes education, exercise physiology or dietetics services. Suitability can be assessed once per calendar year and, if found suitable, a patient can utilise up to eight group services per calendar year. The allied health services available are diabetes education, exercise physiology and dietetics health services. 

On 20 August 2024, the MBS Review Advisory Committee (MRAC) commenced a review of MBS referred chronic condition management services. The MRAC will assess whether these services are adequately supporting patients with chronic conditions and whether individual and group MBS services could be improved to better support eligible patients. Further information is available on the Review of MBS referred chronic condition management services website.

Useful Resources

There are a variety of Australian and state and territory government resources and initiatives that provide information and support about non-pharmacological interventions, such as healthy diet and physical activity. Many Australian states and territories provide free, tailored health coaching. Links to these resources are provided below.

Australian Government

State and territory

Frequently Asked Questions

When will semaglutide (Wegovy) be listed on the PBS for people with established cardiovascular disease?

The PBAC’s recommendation to list semaglutide on the PBS for people with established cardiovascular disease and obesity is an important first step, however other processes need to be completed before a medicine can be listed on the PBS. Firstly, companies and the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing must agree on arrangements for PBS subsidy consistent with the PBAC’s recommendation. This includes reaching agreement on the subsidised price, financial impacts, and the specific conditions under which the medicine can be prescribed.

Following this step, the Government approves PBS listing, and payment systems and software used by prescribers and pharmacies are updated to give effect to the listing. The process from submission of required documents by the company following a PBAC recommendation to PBS listing usually takes about five months but can take longer for complex or high‑cost listings. The progress through these steps will be published on the Semaglutide (Wegovy) November 2025 Medicines Status Website.

When will GLP-1s be listed on the PBS for other priority populations?

Broader PBS subsidy of GLP-1 medicines will require further PBAC consideration based on the submissions brought forward by sponsoring pharmaceutical companies. Consumers and health professionals may wish to contact the relevant pharmaceutical sponsor company to enquire whether the company intends to make a submission for the medical condition or population of interest to them.

My health practitioner has prescribed a GLP-1 for me that is not listed on the PBS, or not listed for my condition on the PBS, and I cannot afford to purchase it. What should I do?

Patients are encouraged to discuss treatment affordability with their health practitioner, who is best placed to advise them on alternative treatment options that meet their specific circumstances.

The Australian Government provides funding to the state and territories to assist with the costs of operating public hospitals, which can include assistance with the costs of medicines that patients are unable to afford. In some circumstances, your treating doctor might consider making an application, on your behalf, to the drug and therapeutics committee of a local public hospital to request assistance with the cost of treatment. 

In certain circumstances, pharmaceutical companies provide medicines at reduced costs through compassionate or expanded access programs. Pharmaceutical companies are not obliged to provide this type of access but may choose to. You could contact the sponsor of the relevant medication to ask if it would be possible to access the medicine at a reduced cost through a compassionate access or expanded access program.  

If you have private health insurance, it may also be worth asking your insurer if your policy would cover the cost of the medicine. Some insurance policies include cover for medicines that are not listed on the PBS.  

Prices for GLP-1s can vary significantly between pharmacies. If you choose to continue purchasing a GLP-1 privately, it may useful to contact several pharmacies to enquire about prices.