Fix PBS rules on hypertension pills to save patients money and reflect global guidelines: experts
Single-pill combination as initial treatment for hypertension is not covered by the PBS.
PBS rules stopping doctors from prescribing single-pill combinations as first line for hypertension are at odds with international guidelines and costing patients money, experts say.
Several guidelines, including those of the International Society of Hypertension and the European Society of Cardiology, recommend single-pill combinations — multiple blood pressure control drugs in one pill — as a first-line treatment.
However, the PBS does not subsidise these pills as initial treatment.
A new paper published in the Journal of Hypertension has compared patient co-payments for 57 single-pill combinations with their free-drug equivalents.Â
