The Work Continues to Deliver on Medical Advances for All Australians
MTAA welcomes the Federal Government’s response to ‘The New Frontier: Delivering better health for all Australians’ Report handed down last night.
The landmark inquiry, tabled two years ago, by the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Health, Aged Care, and Sport with considerable input and collaboration from the industry, set a significant and achievable agenda to deliver access to the medical advances all Australians should have access to when they need it.
Critically, it tabled recommendations that would assist the Government in working towards its ambition set out in the recent Intergenerational Report (IGR) of the potential of advances in medical technologies to ensure Australians live longer, healthier and more productive lives.
In order to achieve this, Government must seize on this opportunity with bold and future-focused reforms, many of which have been set out in the Report. It is clear from the Government’s response to the recommendations, more can and must be done, partcularly to improve Health Technology Assessment (HTA) processes for medical devices. The Independent Review of the HTA process is simply one of a number of reforms that require our focus.
MTAA, and its members, will continue to be willing partners with the Government to deliver this.
