Each of the two major political parties has backed a major boost to Medicare following the upcoming federal election, with Labor pledging $8.5 billion in Medicare funding over four years and the Coalition vowing to match it ‘dollar for dollar’.
Labor’s announcement included extending their bulk-billing incentive which they had tripled for pensioners, concession card holders and children to all Australians from 1 November, providing 400 nursing scholarships, fund the training of 2000 new GPs a year by 2028 and install a new Bulk Billing Incentive program which will provide 12.5 loading payment on Medicare rebates for fully bulk-billing practices.
“I want every Australian to know they only need their Medicare card, not their credit card, to receive the healthcare they need,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said.
“Australia’s doctors voted Peter Dutton the worst Health Minister in Medicare history for a reason, Peter Dutton tried to end bulk billing with a GP tax and then started a six-year freeze to Medicare rebates that froze GP incomes and stripped billions out of Medicare,” Health Minister Mark Butler said.
On the same day Labor announced their pledge, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton and Shadow Health Minister Anne Ruston matched it, while also pledging an additional $500 million to restore funding for mental health services. Labor reduced the number of subsidised mental health sessions available per year from 20 to 10 in 2023.
“Under Labor’s bulk billing crisis, it has never been harder and more expensive to see a doctor. Australians are now paying 45 per cent more to see their GP, as bulk billing has collapsed from 88 per cent under the Coalition, to 77 per cent under Anthony Albanese,” the joint media release reads.
“This crisis has forced 1.5 million Australians to avoid seeing a doctor in 2023-24, adding further demand to already under-pressure hospitals across the country.”
The Coalition media release welcomed the investment in the bulk billing incentive, training for GPs and nurses and the additional $1.7 billion in funding for the public hospital system.
Australian Medical Association President Dr Danielle McMullen said the announcement shows that the government understands the quantum of funding that’s needed to reverse decades of underinvestment and to start to shift the dial on accessible and affordable general practice care.
“This will make a difference to the sustainability of bulk billing, general practices and in areas where practices and GPs have recently had to introduce small out-of-pocket charges, this will improve things for their situation and potentially mean that they can reverse those out-of-pocket charges for patients,” she said.
“Excitingly, today we’ve seen some excellent announcements about workforce support for general practice. We’re seeing more training places, a sign-on bonus for doctors who choose to become GPs, and paid parental leave and study leave for general practice trainees.”
While welcoming the funding, the AMA still expressed concerns that in some areas, particularly metropolitan areas, patients may still not be able to access full bulk billing as the rebate may still fall short of the cost of care and also called for a restructuring of medicare that helps cover longer appointments for patients with chronic and complex ailments.
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) echoed the AMA’s support of the funding for training, the bipartisan commitment of funding and concerns regarding the impact in metropolitan areas while also warning the focus on bulk-billing rates may not suit all general practice business models.
“The additional investment into general practice is a positive thing but we’ve got to make sure that it’s targeted to the people who need it and the GPs who need that funding as well,’ RACGP President Dr Michael Wright said to newsGP.
“Just because these bulk-billing incentives are available to everyone doesn’t mean everyone’s going to have access to bulk billing, because GPs are still able to set their fees and the college will completely support that going forward,”
“The Medicare rebate still may not cover the cost of care and that’s really important for government to make clear and for patients to know.”
