The Thalidomide scandal also prompted changes in the Australian drug regulatory system. Before the scandal there was hardly any oversight and whatever controls existed varied immensely in the different states and territories. In 1964 the independent Australian Drug Evaluation Committee (ADEC) was established.  The members of the ADEC consisted of senior clinicians, toxicologists and pharmacologists and advised about risks and benefits of new drugs being imported into Australia. In 2010 ADEC was replaced by the Advisory Committee on Prescription Medicines (ACPM).

The Australian government has had minimal involvement in the compensation of Australian Thalidomide survivors and did not participate in any of the following settlements. In 1974 a small of group of survivors received a small lump-sum in an out-of-court settlement with Distillers, the Australian Thalidomide distributor. Then in 2009 another settlement was reached, again between Distillers and a small group of survivors. Finally a landmark settlement for Lynette Rowe and other Australian Thalidomide survivors was reached in 2012.