Closing the Gap (CTG) PBS Co-payment Pharmacies in Darwin

For people managing a long-term condition, the cost of medicine is not a one-off. It is every month, every repeat, year after year, and that cost can quietly become a reason people skip doses or delay filling a script. The Closing the Gap (CTG) PBS Co-payment Program is designed to remove that barrier for registered Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, reducing the cost of eligible PBS medicines so that money is less likely to get in the way of staying well. In Darwin, a community pharmacy can apply the CTG benefit when your registration shows up in the dispensing system and the prescription meets PBS rules.

Because the program is national, your CTG registration helps wherever you fill a script, whether that is near home, in the Darwin CBD, or while you are travelling away from your community. Register once, and the benefit follows you.

How the payment changes

The PBS applies the benefit in two main ways:

If you would normally pay the general PBS co-payment, you instead pay the lower concessional rate.
If you have a concession card and would normally pay the concessional rate, you pay no PBS co-payment at all.

A couple of things can still cost extra: brand premiums (where you choose a more expensive brand than the base PBS-priced one) and any non-PBS medicines. If the amount at the counter looks different from what you expected, ask the pharmacist to explain the price before they dispense, so there are no surprises.

Registration and eligibility

A PBS prescriber, such as your GP, or an eligible Aboriginal Health Practitioner can register you for CTG through Services Australia systems. A pharmacist can usually check whether your registration is showing, but the pharmacy does not make the original eligibility decision, so registration happens with your prescriber or health service, not at the chemist counter.

You may be eligible if you identify as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander, are registered with Medicare, and a prescriber or eligible Aboriginal Health Practitioner assesses that the cost of medicine could affect the management of a health condition.

Filling a script in Darwin

Bring your Medicare card, your concession card if you have one, and your prescription or eScript token. The pharmacist can process both paper and electronic prescriptions, provided the medicine is PBS eligible and the pharmacy is approved to supply PBS medicines.

If you also need help organising your medicines, ask whether the pharmacy offers Dose Administration Aids (medicine packing), and check whether CTG applies only to the medicine cost rather than any packing fee, because those are separate.

Practical Example: A man who has recently moved to Darwin from a remote community manages diabetes and high blood pressure, and his medicines were always covered under CTG back home. At a new pharmacy near his accommodation, he hands over his Medicare and concession cards with his eScript. The pharmacist checks the dispensing system, sees his CTG registration has carried over, and applies the benefit so he pays nothing for his PBS medicines. When one medicine still shows a small charge, the pharmacist explains it is a brand premium and offers the base-priced brand instead, which clears the cost entirely.

Finding a pharmacy

Use search for pharmacies to find a pharmacy near your accommodation, clinic, or workplace. You can also browse pharmacies in NT and check opening hours before travelling in from a remote community, so you are not caught out by a closed door after a long drive.

Official sources to check

Use current program information from PBS and Services Australia:

If you think you should be registered but the discount does not appear at the counter, ask the pharmacist what they can see in the system, then contact your prescriber or health service to check your registration. It is usually a quick fix, and worth sorting so the benefit applies every time.