TOGETHER WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE

For many of us, good health is something we take for granted. But for Australians living with Cystic Fibrosis, this isn’t an option.

I’ll admit that I didn’t know all that much about CF until we welcomed a brilliant young woman into our Eco Tan family. Her name is Daisy, and she is one of the 3,500 Australians currently battling Cystic Fibrosis.

As a disorder that damages the lungs and digestive system, she told me that some days she wakes up and feels as though she is “breathing through a straw”. This year has been especially difficult, with COVID-19 threatening the health of CF sufferers even more than the average person.

While there is currently no cure for this condition, there is a drug – Trikafta – that has been shown to significantly improve lung function and quality of life for people with CF. The problem is that it costs $300,000 for a one-year supply. Putting Trikafta on the Pharmaceutical Benefit Scheme would change the lives of Australians living with Cystic Fibrosis by making it more affordable, but the Australian government isn’t planning on considering it at this year’s PBAC meeting in November.

For people like Daisy, this means another year of waking up each and day and wondering what hurdle might lay ahead. Trikafta has already been life-changing for people who have been able to access it, with one woman saying that, “for the first time in my life, I feel like I can breathe when I wake up in the morning.”

This is why I’m writing this today. I’m asking you to join me in requesting Health Minister Greg Hunt MP, Shadow Health Minister Chris Bowen MP and Prime Minister Scott Morrison to put Trikafta on the PBAC agenda for 2020. When we work together to make noise, change will follow.

HERE’S HOW YOU CAN HELP

Contact Greg Hunt MP, Chris Bowen MP and Prime Minister Scott Morrison and respectfully ask them to put Trikafta on the 2020 PBAC agenda

1. Post a photo on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter tagging @greghuntmp @chrisbowenmp and @scottmorrisonmp and ask them to add Trikafta to the 2020 PBAC agenda. If you don’t have a photo to share, head to @ecotan to repost our photo.
2. Visit our Facebook page and share our recent post asking the PBAC to consider Trikafta at their next meeting.
3. Call MP’s offices to request that they add Trikafta to the 2020 PBAC agenda!
   1. Call Greg Hunt MP – (03) 5977 9082 
   2. Call Chris Bowen MP – (02) 9604 0710
   3. Prime Minister Scott Morrison – (02) 6277 7700