Member for Eden-Monaro Kristy McBain (centre) joined her Labor colleagues in calling for an inquiry into rural and regional health services. Photo: Facebook.
A new Senate committee will consider the Federal Government’s Stronger Rural Health Strategy, GP training reforms and what areas are defined as regional and rural.
Labor Member for Eden-Monaro Kristy McBain joined the call for the inquiry after 500 residents in her electorate signed her regional health petition and shared their stories.
Ms McBain said the situation has hit crisis point.
“Too many people are being forced to wait weeks to see a GP – if they can see a GP at all – and the problem is only getting worse,” she said.
“COVID-19 has highlighted the holes and gaps in our health care system, and none are more obvious than the shortage of GPs across regional NSW.
“But this issue isn’t new. People living in the regions have been battling a critical lack of GPs for far too long.”
Ms McBain said it is important that regions have access to timely and quality healthcare.
The latter is also pertinent to the capital region after the Federal Government removed the Territory from some rural bulk-billing incentives in January 2020 by reclassifying Canberra and Queanbeyan doctors.
ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr and ACT Minister for Health Rachel Stephen-Smith have consistently criticised the Federal Government for removing the incentive and freezing Medicare rebates.
At last month’s ACT Labor conference, Mr Barr said the government was “ripping the guts out of Medicare”.
Bulk billing has increased from half of GP patients to about two-thirds in the past decade, but the ACT continues to have the lowest bulk-billing rate of any capital city in Australia.
The ACT also has the lowest number of GPs per capita in Australia.
The ACT ranked second-worst in the nation for delaying GP visits due to associated costs, according to Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) data from November 2020.
Submissions for the Senate inquiry close on 30 September, and a report will be prepared by the final Parliamentary sitting in March 2022.
The public is able to make, or view, a submission here.
Original Article published by Dominic Giannini on The RiotACT.
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