Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Hansard source

I can certainly understand the member for Hinkler’s interest in this issue because, thanks to the policies of the Howard government, the GP bulk-billing rate in Hinkler is up almost 10 per cent over the last 12 months. Bulk-billing is not the be-all and end-all of Medicare, but it is important. It should be widely available, particularly to children and pensioners, and that is just what is happening thanks to the policies of the Howard government.

Thanks to the bulk-billing incentive payments that were part of Strengthening Medicare, the GP bulk-billing rate has lifted from 66 per cent in December 2003 to over 75 per cent last December. Figures released in the last fortnight show that, between 2004 and 2005, the GP bulk-billing rate rose in 144 out of the 150 electorates of this country. In 96 per cent of electorates the bulk-billing rate rose last year. I was interested to note that in the electorate of Brand the bulk-billing rate has risen by almost eight per cent over the last year. The Leader of the Opposition is remarkably silent on this topic.

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