The Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) has published the outcomes from their March 2025 meeting. PBAC has recommended that all 4 new treatments for MG patients be listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS).
This is wonderful news for our patient community in Australia, and it shows that our submissions and engagement with the assessment process were impactful and credible. Thank you again to all of you who made a personal submission and described your lived experience.
The outcome also demonstrates that together, and with our clinicians, we established the unmet needs of our patient community. This is not commonly stated in PBAC outcomes, so it is important that this has been recognised. Here is their wording:
“The PBAC appreciated the input provided by patients, carers, and clinicians and found the comments very informative for understanding the high and unmet clinical need for new effective treatments and the potential use of the new therapies in practice. The comments outlined the significant impact that gMG can have on quality of life, including the impact on patients’ families. The comments also described the limitations of currently available treatment options, including adverse events and lengthy administration times.”
Please note the PBAC recommendation for these treatments is for generalised MG (gMG) and AChR antibody-positive adult patients. The MAA will continue to raise awareness and advocate for those of us who do not fit into this group of MG patients.
Once a recommendation by the Committee has been achieved, next steps can be undertaken by the supporting Government departments. This means that it will still be a few months before these treatments can be available on the PBS. Guidelines will also be established. The MAA is working closely with key stakeholders to fully understand the next steps and to ensure we receive answers to the questions that matter to patients.
Some patients will be fortunate enough to receive the treatments early through the Pharmaceutical Company Early Access Programmes. This is an establishment process and is limited. The MAA and State Associations would be glad to receive feedback from people on these programmes.
The PBAC outcomes for MG are set out below. More information on the PBAC outcomes is available here: https://www.pbs.gov.au/info/industry/listing/elements/pbac-meetings/pbac-outcomes/recommendations-made-by-the-pbac-march-2025 and the detailed summaries will be published in the coming months.
