As consumers continue to feel cost-of-living pressures, including from rising healthcare costs, we are pleased to see growing support of our call to the Australian Government to fund a public education program that explains the Medicare system to the public. Last week, the Royal Australian College of GPs (RACGP) added their voice of support behind our Understanding Medicare – Understanding your health campaign that would give consumers the health literacy tools to help them save money, navigate the health system and improve their health.
In other news, tomorrow (1 March) we welcome the Australian government’s release of the second tranche of 60-day prescriptions of PBS medicines, which include treatments for a range of diseases including endometriosis, cancer, arthritis, Type 2 diabetes and thyroid conditions. The full list of medicines available will be available on the Department of Health and Aged Care website.
CHF will also be updating consumer-friendly fact sheets and FAQs on our dedicated microsite 60dayscripts.com.au. We encourage you to share our microsite site within your stakeholder communities.
Lastly, we are saddened by the news that Health Issues Centre (HIC) Victoria will be closing its doors from 7 March. For almost 40 years, HIC has been a tireless advocate for consumer and community engagement in Victoria and a long-standing member organisation of CHF. To the Board, CEO Alison Coughlan and the team at HIC, we thank you for your tireless advocacy in championing consumer engagement in Victoria.
This highlights the continued need for ongoing financial investment at both federal and state levels to ensure long-term sustainability of harnessing the lived and living expertise of consumers in improving our health system. When consumers can advocate for their needs in the health system, we know it results in better service design, delivery and uptake. | 
