Positive Life NSW

Home » PBS Approval for Sculptra

PBS Approval for Sculptra

Posted online 7 September 2009

Sculptra® (Poly-l-lactic acid) will be available though the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) for the treatment of severe facial lipoatrophy caused by HIV therapy from 1 September 2009.

What this means

Sculptra® is now available as a subsidised prescription drug. The PBS allows for 2 treatments per prescription, and 4 repeats. Maintenance treatment is limited to 1 re-treatment every two years. Each prescription will cost $32.50 for people not holding a Health Care Concession Card.

Treatment

  • Treatment with Sculptra® is for severe facial lipoatrophy
  • Only accredited physicians can prescribe Sculptra®
  • Patients must be referred by their s100 prescribing doctor
  • A number of treatments may be needed to restore facial contours

Will the procedure be covered by Medicare?

At this time, the procedure is not covered by Medicare. Patients will have to pay for an initial consultation and for the procedure. The procedure comprises a series of injections of small amounts of the product (Sculptra®) under the skin. Different practitioners may charge different fees for a series of treatments. You should discuss fees with the practitioner.

The Medical Services Advisory Committee (MSAC) has been requested to approve an application for a Medicare item listing number for the procedure. This will mean that once approval has been announced, there will be no cost to the patient if the practitioner bulk-bills. If the practitioner doe not bulk bill and charges more than the Medicare scheduled fee, the patient may need to pay the gap.

Positive Life NSW is hopeful that the treatment will be available via a Medicare rebated item in the near future.

More information

A list of accredited practitioners performing the procedure can be found on the product manufacturer’s website: http://lipoatrophy.com.au/

For more information about accessing Sculptra® via the PBS:

  • Talk with your doctor
  • Positive Life NSW - (02) 9361 6011

More like this:

About this article

  • The content of this article was checked for accuracy at the time of publication. We endeavour to correct errors in articles on our web site as we become aware of them, but in some cases articles may contain errors.
  • We urge our readers to make every effort to ensure any information found on our website is up-to-date and relevant for their needs before relying on it to make medical decisions – your doctor can help with this, or you can call the Positive Life NSW office.

This page last updated: 09/07/2009 - 5:43pm

Comments

Please stay on topic and be polite. All comments are reviewed by the website editor in line with our Comment Guidelines before being posted to the site.

Post new comment

The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly.
  • Use [fn]...[/fn] (or <fn>...</fn>) to insert automatically numbered footnotes.
  • Allowed HTML tags: <a> <blockquote> <br> <cite> <code> <dd> <div> <dl> <dt> <em> <h3> <h4> <h5> <img> <li> <ol> <p> <span> <strong> <ul>
  • Lines and paragraphs break automatically.
  • Images can be added to this post.
  • Web page addresses and e-mail addresses turn into links automatically. (Better URL filter.)

More information about formatting options

CAPTCHA
To prevent automated spam, please type the two words displayed in the box below to submit your enquiry. Visually impaired users can click the audio button to hear the challenge.
Positive Life NSW • PO Box 831 Darlinghurst NSW 1300 • Tel: 02 9206 2177 • Freecall: 1800 245 677 • ABN: 42907908942 • Contact Us
This website is for education and information purposes only and is not a substitute for professional healthcare advice. If you have or suspect you may have a health problem, please speak with your healthcare provider. For more information, please refer to our Disclaimer.