(Transcript from World News Radio)
There are concerns a proposed massive trade deal could have an impact on Australia's health system.
Australia is expected to join the Trans Pacific Partnership with 11 other countries including Japan and the United States later this year.
Health experts are warning, it could raise the price of medicines.
Santilla Chingaipe reports.
66-year-old Noel Smith has suffered from arthritis almost all his life.
The pensioner was first diagnosed with juvenile arthritis at the age of 6.
"Which later developed into osteoarthritis, and in the last ten years, rheumatoid arthritis. It's been somewhat of a journey. I've had four hip replacements, I also have heart disease, I've also had two lots of open heart surgery and I also have a disease called Plural Fibrosis of the lungs as well, and diabetes. So, a fair round up there."
Noel Smith takes up to 18 different medications a day.
And his most costly is his arthritis medication, which he has to have once a week.
"A drug called Imuran, which is one of the drugs they use for rheumatoid arthritis and it's quite expensive - I think it's 850 dollars on an injection - once a week injection."
Mr Smith says the cost of that medication and others are subsidised under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.
"The PBS system is absolutely crucial to not only myself but all people with with chronic disease and particularly arthritis."
But there are concerns that drugs for chronic illnesses such as the ones Mr Smith suffers, could go up once Australia signs the Trans-Pacific Partnership deal.
Researchers from the University of New South Wales, the University of Sydney and La Trobe University have concluded it could increase the cost of the P-B-S.
None of the details about the closed-door negotiations on the TPP have been made public, and the researchers had to rely on leaks of the draft talks.
Professor Peter Brooks, from Arthritis Victoria, is convinced they've drawn the right conclusions.
"This free trade agreement - and it's silly to call it a free trade agreement, because it's not going to be free for patients in Australia who are on medications because the prices are going to go up."
Michael Moore is the president of the Public Health Association.
He says the Australian government needs to be more transparent about the deal.
"By and large the negotiations have been secret, so this health impact assessment has had to work on information that has been gleaned through WikiLeaks and places like that. What it does show though, particularly Aboriginal communities, multicultural communities - who rely on our systems to get access to medicines at reasonable prices will find it that much harder to get to those medicines."
Peter Brooks from Arthritis Victoria says it could also see the limitation of cheaper generic drugs.
"Specifically with the arthritis drugs - the big pharmaceutical companies will be able to extend the patent life and what we call evergreening, which means that they hold patents forever almost, which means you can't get access to generics. We know with other medications that when generics come in we see price reductions of up to a third."
Dr Michael Moore says it also has implications for other health-related areas.
"The first is the Pharmaceuticals Benefits Scheme, how much medicines could cost, the availability of medicines. But there's also the possible restrictions on the sorts of laws that we might make on things like tobacco and alcohol."
Erin Turner from consumer group Choice agrees.
"The Trans Pacific Partnership looks like it's going to have something called an Investor Stade Dispute Settlement clause. This allows big businesses to take action against government decisions whether that's laws or regulations. Made in the interests of the public. It puts things like food labelling laws at risk."
Trade Minister Andrew Robb has dismissed the concerns as 'scaremongering'.
Mr Robb says Australia would not support outcomes that would increase the prices of medicines for Australians or adversely affect the health system.
Trade negotiators are due to meet in Hawaii next week with an agreement to be signed off in the next few months.
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