NEWS Contraception is about to get cheaper for hundreds of thousands of women in Australia
BY: Kartya Vucetic
In what feels like common sense, the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) has just been expanded to make contraception cheaper and more accessible for Australian women.
Announced by Health Minister Mark Butler this morning, a form of long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) has been added, the NuvaRing, which will now cost $31.60 for general patients and $7.70 for concession card holders from 1 November. It’s a saving of up to 88% for these specific products.
The NuvaRing is the newest contraceptive product added to the PBS this year | Image: Family Planning Tasmania
The changes would mean roughly 300,000 women will save reportedly “hundreds and hundreds of dollars” every year, estimating an average saving of about $400. Aka about the same price as a return flight deal to Bali.
It’s all part of a broader $570 million federal investment into women’s health, which also includes funding to train more health professionals to insert and remove LARCs and better bulk-billing incentives for contraceptive care.
Mark Butler appearing on The Today Show this morning | Image: Channel 9
Butler said the goal is to ensure “Australia’s women will have access to all of their contraceptive choices for no more than $100 a year.” Or in other words, no more than $25 a script.
Why does this matter? Because LARCs are among the most effective forms of birth control. However, in Australia, cost and access have long been the biggest barriers. The changes are expected to lift uptake dramatically, making contraception one of the few things in life now getting cheaper.
